


Last Name Keener, First Name Harley

by SmolTownFangirl



Series: First Name Harley [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: :D, But not bashing, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Dont worry it ends happy :), F/M, Friends to Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Harley Centric, Harley hates peter IRL but loves the peter he knows online, I am, Implied Character Death, Internet Friends AU, Iron Dad, Its because i really like Harley, Its not just because I'm ignoring Voltron, M/M, Miles is in it for a hot sec during the epilogue, Not, Parley, SO SORRY, Seriously harley is so chaotic, Starts Pre-Captain America Winter Soldier, Tumblr AU, a lot more team iron man, chaotic energy, chaotic nuetral harley, harley gives a good lap dance but dont worry hes just joking, harleys mom dies, not team Cap friendly, oh yeah, prankwar, will add tags, wow me make a new fic??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2019-09-29 12:07:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 60,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17203130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmolTownFangirl/pseuds/SmolTownFangirl
Summary: IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I love spiders, they just, exist man.IronMansMechanic: PETER BUD WHAT THE FUCK(Peter and Harley are internet friends. Harley's mom dies, and he gets adopted by Tony because Tony is obviously the best choice for him and his sister to go too. Harley meets Peter at school. Instant. Hatred.)





	1. Mama Said by Lucas Graham

**Author's Note:**

> Hey Y'all!! this fic is mainly just a passion project that I'm making because I want to!
> 
> This fic starts awhile before anything happens, and six months before Peter gets the spider Bite, and even more time before the events of everything. Also, I want to establish that this is a world where Tony stays in active touch with the Keeners and is actually fairly good friends with Macy Keener (Also Pepper and Mac are friends.) 
> 
> Also, Macy has some form of fast acting cancer, but its not specified. There is an offscreen death but that's it.
> 
> If you click on the link on their usernames it takes you to their blogs

_One Year Before The Adoption_

_One Year and Four Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

 

[IronMan-DidNothingWrong](https://ironman-didnothingwrong.tumblr.com/) sent a ask: [ Literally Tony Stark is the worst person ever and….]

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Dude, you’re so eloquent in this post and then your other posts are like, “LOL IRON MAN ISN'T MY DADDY HE'S JUST MY DAD” and I think that wild.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: But also thank you for putting that ass hat in their place bc holy shit that’s some messed up shit to say about someone who has saved so many people!

[IronMansMechanic](https://ironmansmechanic.tumblr.com/): Lol no u

IronMansMechanic: okay but on a real note that bud better never come back to my inbox we don’t stan people talking shit about Tony Stark he’s the real MVP

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Hakdbakfbaond you’re right and you should say it!!

IronMansMechanic: Like on a real note though, I hate when people don’t acknowledge Tony Stank for being the best person on this earth like… his relief foundations His donations to charities and the work are iconic and he needs to be treasured he’s helping rebuild New York and every other place that’s been affected by places and he’s just awesome plus he’s pretty good at not just like immediantly attacking the supposed villains and instead attacking the real villains

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Not saying I disagree with you, but wdym????

IronMansMechanic: lmao from the day he became iron man he’s been fighting old rich white guys who try to pretend that the real villains are someone from the Middle East bc of war on terror but he always manages to figure out that it’s an old rich white guy

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: oh my god you’re right.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Oh btw, I’m Peter

IronMansMechanic: The codename is Mecha

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Codename?????

IronMansMechanic: I’m not a dumbass that gives my name out online

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I mean I guess I’m leaving bye

IronMansmechanic: WAIT NO COME BACK I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: you thought wrong

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: JKDLABJFLJUIFE NO IM KIDDING IM SORRY

IronMansmechanic: See now we have to be best friends

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Oh snap you’re right.

 

Harley felt himself snort. What kind of a nerd said snap? A nerd who ran an iron man fan account and put his real name and age out there. What a dork. He glanced around at the darkness in his shed. How long had he been in here for?

The clock on the wall- Avengers themed, Abbie had given him it for his twelfth birthday a few years after Tony had crashed into his shed- read two AM. His eyes widened, realizing just how late it had gotten. He quickly put on his jacket, closing his laptop and turning to exit the door. He was so fucked if his mom found out that he had stayed up past midnight again. She didn’t mind that he was always in the Shed building and tinkering and going online, but she was a little stricter on the idea that he should get a good night's sleep. He slipped back inside, clicking the lock behind him and slipping through his house. His mom wouldn't be home for another few hours, but that never really seemed to matter because Abbie loved to rat him out and wasn't afraid to do so when he stayed in the shed past the times he was supposed to. Quickly he made his way past the kitchen and into his and Abbie’s shared bedroom.

She startled upon entering the room, “Harley…?”

“Go back to sleep, sis,” He muttered, grabbing his pajamas and slipping into the restroom. He quickly brushed his teeth, checking his phone. A missed call from Tony, and a few more notifications from Peter who was asking him questions about other superheroes and the works.

After changing he sat on his bed. Abbie was asleep in the one across from his, and not for the first time did he wish that their house had more than two bedrooms. He could sleep in his mom’s but he knew that would immediately alert her that he had been up past his bedtime. Oh well. He slipped under the covers, pulling them over his head and opening his phone.

 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: So why the name Mecha??

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Like, it’s a cool name, but why?

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Is it like a personal thing, because if it is just tell me to stop asking lol.

IronMansMechanic: jkdlfbe no its not i promise, i was just getting ready for bed

IronMansMechanic: hOnesty it has a lot less to do with it being like a name name and more of something that happened once a few years back

IronMansMechanic: which actually is a pretty personal story but vagely this guy came into my life and rn hes kinda like a dad bc my real dad left for cigarettes and never came back

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I get that, my parents are dead.

IronMansMechanic: im sorry for your loss my dude

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: It was a long time ago. Plus I’ve got Aunt May and my Uncle Ben, so I’m golden.

IronMansMechanic: still thats rough bud  
  
IronMansMechanic: anyway so he comes into my life and he jokes around abt how he is a mechanic and i was like were connected and since hes a mechanic im a mechanic too you know

IronMansMechanic: he left town a bit after that but we stay in touch and he visits once every few months just to make sure were all doing okay and stuff

IronMansMechanic: first time he was here though no one new but me and it was really funny when my mom found out because hes a bit of a celebraty

IronMansMechanic: at lest he is in tennessee

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: That’s actually so wild, to be honest.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: So are you from Tennessee?? Thats so cool, I’ve never been out of the big city my entire life.

IronMansMechanic: wait what city

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Technically, New York.

IronMansMechanic: JFJSKFLAEU SO YOU WERE THERE

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: YEAH BUT I WAS LIKE EIGHT

IronMansMechanic: OH MY GOD THATS SO COOL THOUGH ARE YOU OKAY HOW DID YOU SURVIVE DO YOU HAVE ANXIETY ABOUT IT ARE YOU OKAY

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: NO, BUT NOT BECAUSE OF THE ATTACKS, I GOT SAVED BY I R O N M A N, YES BUT THATS UNRELATED, NO BUT AGAIN UNRELATED.

IronMansMechanic: OH MY GOD THATS SOO COOL

 

Their conversation dragged on. Harley felt himself slip into sleep long after the revelation of Peter having been saved by Tony. The two of them seemingly got on like a wildfire, and he was kind of excited. He didn’t usually have internet friends. Especially since he was a bit more hyperfocused on Tony and Iron Man and that was half of what he talked about. The other half being stuff he was engineering and other cool things like that.

Something deep in his gut told him that this was going to be okay. This was going to be amazing. This friendship was going to be golden. He fell asleep with a grin on his face and a phone in his hand, with his new friends tumblr page open.

 

_Two months Before the Adoption_

_Six Months before until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

 

“All I’m saying,” Harley flung a glare at Ethan, who was still cracking up, “Is that y’all are wrong.”

Joyce rolled her eyes, “Harley I don’t care what you think, but I’m not wrong. Hulk could kill Thor in a fight any day.”

“No he couldn’t!”

“Harley,” Ethan was still wheezing, “You can’t prove that Hulk couldn’t kill Thor by saying that Tony Stark couldn’t kill Thor and therefore Hulk couldn’t ether!”

Harley felt the tips of his ears burn and was suddenly really glad that his bus stop was approaching the house, “Fuck off! The Hulk Buster armor-”

“Didn’t actually stop the Hulk!”

“Joyce,” Harley huffed, “No one asked you.”

“Actually Harley, you started this conversation,” Joyce snorted, shoving him in the shoulder.

The bus was rolling to a stop outside of Harley’s house, and he sighed, “Are y’all coming over or not?”

“Nah,” Joyce shook her head, standing up to let him off, “Mrs. Alberti gave me so much French homework I want to die.”

“Should of taken Spanish like the rest of us normals,” Ethan said to her before turning to Harley again, “And nope, Ma wants me home for chores and the like.”

Harley rolled his eyes, “Joyce could have taken Italian. And both y’all are stupid.”

He turned away from his friends and made his way off of the bus as they both shouted out their protests of them being stupid, and how ‘not everyone can be a super genius!’ He really did love his friends but the fact that they considered him a super genius was kind of annoying. He wasn’t a super genius. He was just an average genius. An average Freshman genius. Who happened to have connections with Tony Stark and happened to be working on a verison of the Iron Man armor that could be piloted from the indoors manually and maybe had a slightly lethal mark 20 Potato gun. But an Average genius nonetheless.

He thought about how he should actually probably call Tony. They hadn’t talked in about a week, and that was usually when he called. He got out his phone, grinning when he saw that Peter had messaged him about how the girl he liked smiled to him this day, and how his best friend was gonna rewatch star wars with him this weekend. He figured he would text him later, so he ignored the tumblr message, and clicked Tony’s contact. He answered on the second ring.

“Hey kid! I was just about to call you.”

“Yeah I know,” Harley grinned readjusting the grip on his backpack, “You know how I know?”

“Because we’re connected?”

“Because we are connected,” Harley grinned wider, “So what are you up to right now?”

“Oh you know, just hanging with my good friends the avengers.”

“They’re there right now?,” Harley exclaimed getting out his key so he could walk in the house, “Let me talk to them!”

He heard some chattering in the background, and a group of people laughing. He assumed Tony was telling them of his request and they were teasing him for having an illicit son or something. He sighed, as he stepped into the house. Abbie was screaming.

“Holy fuck,” He shouted, gaining the attention of Tony.

“Kid? Kid are you okay?”

“Mom!”

He rushed forward, to where Abbie was standing over their mother sobbing, “Mom! Mom answer me!”

“Kid! Harley- Friday, send the cops to their house- Harley whats happening?”

Harley dropped the phone, in favor of clutching his mom's hand feeling her pulse. There wasn’t one. He cursed, “Abbie, get on the phone with Tony, tell him what happened, and tell him to send an ambulance.”

His sister nodded, her breath hitching as she cried, grabbing the phone off the floor, “Mr. Tony, mom- she- mom was- Mr. Tony mom- I found her passed out and-”

As Abbie talked to Tony, Harley began chest compressions. He had only ever seen chest CPR happen once, and that was on himself after the original Mandran attack when he had been swept away by the water. He was trying his best but he didn’t know what he could do. Or what was happening. He just kept doing chest compressions, trying to get his mom to start breathing again. Abbie was still talking to Tony who had probably suited up and was heading to them.

The sirens came in no short time, and Harley felt so relieved when the paramedics rushed in, quickly pulling him out of the way and getting his mom on a stretcher to go on the ambulance. The police arrived seconds later

The sheriff brought two shock blankets to Harley and Abbie, who was still on the phone with Tony, “Are you kids okay?”

Harley nodded numbly, before gesturing for Abbie to give him the phone. Abbie quickly complied, and turned towards the sheriff telling him of what had happened. Harley spoke into the phone, “Tony?”

“Are you okay?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know what happened.”

“Stay tight, kid. I’m on my way now.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

 

_One week before the Adoption_

_Four months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

  


Tony stood in the doorway of Macy Keener’s hospital room. He’d been here almost every other week, making sure that Harley and Abbie weren’t alone in this fight. He’d also given a sizable donation to the Nashville city hospital, and waved off Macy’s hospital bill. He couldn’t just let her go through a fight with cancer alone with no source of stable income. He refused. He refused to do that to his friend.

Abbie stood at the side of her moms bed, talking softly about what had happened that week. Harley sat on the other side, staring at his mother with sad doe eyes. The kid had been struggling in the past two months. Something Tony absolutely hated to see. He hated seeing both of the Keener children in pain. In some ways they were very much his kids too. He had stepped up as a father figure in their lives for the past few years, giving them someone to look up to. It helped take some of the stress off Macy too, since he was always willing to take the two of them for a weekend or the summer so that she could work more.

She never did want to accept any money from Tony, her pride wouldn’t allow it. But Tony made sure they were cared for no matter what. He and Pepper had made sure of that the second that Tony had officially met the bright and kind Macy Keener. All three of them had become quick friends, bonding over the children. Pepper and Macy were actually really close, and very good friends, and she was usually one of the first to hear when Pepper and Tony got into an argument. The entire Keener family meant so much to Tony and Pepper. And they knew that they meant a lot to the entire Keener family, if the Thanksgivings they were invited to were to go by. And they all took care of each other. In so many ways.

But this wasn’t something that they could just take care of.

Macy wasn’t responding to the Chemotherapy, meaning that, there was a good chance that she was going to die. Macy had sat them down long ago, telling them that they were listed as her childrens secondary guardians but… they hadn’t discussed it much. He and Pepper both knew that if worse did end up coming to worse, they wouldn’t hesitate to help. Harley and Abbie would need them, and they wouldn’t let them be abandoned.

Macy cleared her throat, “Kids?”

Harley and Abbie stopped what they were doing in favor of looking at their mom in a soft silence. She continued, “Can you go outside for a second? I need to talk to Tony.”

“Sure mom,” Harley said softly, standing up and walking over to Abbie to guide her away from their mom, “We love you.”

“I love you too, kiddo.”

The kids cleared out hesitantly and Tony stepped in fully.

“Macy…”

“Tony, sit down,” She smiled at him the best she could, “You look like you’re balding from stress.”

Tony sat down, huffing, “Macy, I am not balding.”

“Sure you’re not.”

“Rude.”

“Don’t call a dying woman rude, Tony.”

“You’re not drying,” Tony frowned, suddenly going serious, “You’re going to be okay.”

Macy gave him a raised eyebrow, “Tony. Don’t fool yourself.”

“Macy-”

“I want you to adopt my kids.”

Tony went quiet. A part of him had known this was coming but he wasn’t expecting it so soon.  He wasn’t expecting any of this so soon.

Macy went on, a sad sort of smile on her face, “You can give them a better life than I ever could. They need you. You’ve been there for them since Harley was nine, Tony, there is no one else in the world that I would trust with my children more. Please Tony, you need to adopt them when I die.”

“Macy- I-”

“Tony. For once in your brilliant life, I’m asking something of you. Please,” she weakly held up a hand to silence him, “You have been such a blessing to my family. You have attended every single one of Abbie’s recitals since she’s known you. You’ve taken both my children on trips and adventures that made them so happy. You are so good to them. And Pepper, she helps me so much. She helps Abbie so much. And don’t get me started on how much both of you have done for Harley. Every single time he needs you you’re there. Tony… I’m begging you. Please take care of them. I don't think I have much time left.”

“Macy,” Tony was choking up, “Of course. There wasn’t even a notion in my mind that i wouldn’t take them but Macy-”

“Its okay. You’ll be a great dad, Tony,” She smiled at him again, a big grin, as big as she could manage, “You’re already their dad. The adoption will just make it official.”

Tony felt his eyes water, “Macy, I- You can’t leave them. Not yet, please. They need you”

“Soon. I’m going to die soon,” Macy’s voice went quiet, “And I think that’s okay. I need you to have the papers ready, when I die. Please. They need you, too”

“Of course.”

“Will you go send them in? I need to say my goodbyes to my kids.”

Tony stood up, and gave a light squeeze to Macy’s shoulder, “of course.”

He stepped outside, wiping his eyes dry, “She wants to see you kids.”

Harley glanced at him, his eyes wide when he noticed that Tony was crying. Abbie was staring at him with a furrowed and concerned brow. But both children just nodded with sad faces and stepped into the room. He opened his phone, “Friday make a call to Pepper.”

“Tony? How is she?”

He sat down, bringing his phone to his ear, “She’s not good Pep, she’s really not good.”

“What’s happening?”

“She wants me to make sure I have the paper’s ready for adoption. To make sure that they have a place to go when she dies.”

Pepper inhaled on the other side of the phone, “Of course. I’ll get right on it.

 

_Three days after Adoption_

_Four months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

 

“Hey Tony?”

Tony jolted, turning towards were Abbie was standing. She looked nervous, and Tony felt a pang in his heart. This kid had been through so much in the past few months, and it kind of broke his heart. The funeral was a small affair, and a somber one. Harley stood on his right side, and Abbie stood on his left. It was raining in Rose Hill, and it felt like the world was mourning the loss of Macy Keener.

He turned too her, “Yeah kiddo?”

“You’re going to take care of us now right?”

Tony pulled Abbie and Harley closer to him, making eye contact with Pepper. She gave a nod, and moved towards them as well, offering her hand to Abbie, who took it.

“Yeah, kiddo, we are.”

 

_One Month After the Adoption_

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

 

IronMansMechanic: yeah but srry again that ive been kind of busy

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha… It's so okay. I would be absolutely destroyed if everything that has happened to you this past month had happened to me.

IronMansMechanic: im okay i promise

IronMansMechanic: like i said after the funeral ive got a place to stay and im going to be okay

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Yeah, for that I’m thankful for.

IronMansMechanic: and hey!!!!!! Now im in new york babbyyy

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I know, I know, it’s all you’ve been talking about.

IronMansMechanic: im a little nervous tho bc hes sending me to this cool science highschool and im not,,,,, excited

IronMansMechanic: lol maybe its your science highschool

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Can you imagine?

IronMansMechanic: dude we would be best friends

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Duh

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Ooof I got to go, class is about to start.

IronMansMechanic: Lol talk to you later.

 

Harley turned off his phone, looking up to where Tony was talking to the principal. He frowned, feeling out of place amongst the shuffling of students who were making their way to class.

One student caught his eye though. A handsome boy who was laughing loudly with a boy who was a little rounder, who was also grinning. The handsome boy had messy brown hair but was wearing the nerdiest science shirt that Harley had ever seen. He had a blinding smile, and harley felt himself blush slightly. And in a blink he was lost in the crowd.

Harley blinked twice, and shifted his weight, and glanced at his phone again. Man he wanted to talk to Peter right now.

Either way, he thought, this isn’t a bad place to go to school.


	2. Lemon Boy by Cavetown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley's first day at school. Fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo yo yo! 
> 
> Honestly i have almost a majority of this fic planned and yall are gonna love me then hate me then love me if you like this fic
> 
> ALSO I MADE A PARKNER PLAYLIST ON SPOTIFY:  
> https://open.spotify.com/user/hsvsusvslv/playlist/4RHPhJ5minJk5cRcgiing2?si=3HiuB3RZQUqXnFBGIGcaoA
> 
> PLEASE CHECK IT OUT BC I LOVE ALL THE SONGS ON IT AND IT MAKES ME THINK OF THEM

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Beginning of The First Day of School_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

Harley was shown around his classrooms by the Principal himself, something he found odd but was assuming the fact that he was Tony Stark’s newly announced adopted son. Each of his classes were fairly far apart from another, and he wasn’t exactly sure how he was going to navigate this school. Especially with the class size. Back in Rose Hill he had known exactly what was gonna happen when he started high school: he was going to be top of the freshman class, and was gonna be the best out of the 60 students (the largest class ever to be heard of at Rose Hill High) and he was gonna course through life. Get a job at the local auto mechanic shop, and get accepted into MIT early and get the hell out of Rose Hill.

All of that was in the cards now. Especially because he was going to a school that specializes in everything that Harley was even kind of good at. No longer would he be an average genius he would just be… average. Even more than that, the freshman class alone was about 1,700 students. That was huge, and Harley had no idea how he was going to deal with it.

They were rounding over to his first period class again, and he felt a ball of nerves build in his gut. As much as he hated to admit it, he was nervous. Peter loved his nerdy science school, but he was always complaining about how hard it was. Harley had always thought that Peter was miles above him in intelligence, and now he was just… walking to his first period class at some fancy science high school and he was nervous. Him. Harley Keener. Harley Keener-Stark. Was nervous about a fancy rich science high school. Well, technically, he was rich too now, but in his own head that didn’t matter. Especially not after years of living off of ramen noodles and beef stew. And now he was going to be going to a school with people who he was pretty sure had been handed things their entire life, if the enrollment fee was anything to go by.

“Mr. Stark?”

He glanced at the teacher at the door, “Oh- um, hi.”

“Nice to meet you,” The woman smiled, a kind look in her eyes, “I’m Mrs. Allen.”

He stuck out his hand, “Likewise, I’m um, Harley Keener - er Harley Keener-Stark, I guess.”

“Yes, I’m aware,” She laughed a bit, shaking his hand, “I assume Mr. Mortia has filled you in on what my class is.”

“Pre-Calculus,” Harley nodded, “I’m kind of excited about it.”

Mrs. Allen grinned, in a way that made him think of his mom, “Well that is a first. Either way, if you come by my class during lunch I’ll give you a run down of what you’ve missed in the first two weeks of school. Either way, why don’t we head in?”

Harley just nodded and walked into the class. Upon his entering the entire class went kind of quiet. It wasn’t the reaction what he was expecting, but what he really wasn’t expecting the entire class  to break into whispers about how he was Tony Stark's new son. He gulped. Tony and Pepper had warned him about people that would swarm him because of his new found fame, but he hadn't taken than seriously. Now he was kind of wishing he had.

"Class," Mrs . Allen spoke, "This is Harley Keener-Stark. Harley, do you wanna say something about yourself?”

The whole class was staring at him like a pack of starved hyena's who were looking at a fresh juicy buffalo. He huffed a grin, like he knew Tony did in front of the media, “Not much to say, really.”

“Really?” A boy blurted out at the front of the class- the same boy who was walking with the handsome boy, who sadly wasn’t in this class- eyes wide, “But you were adopted by Tony Stark- there’s got to be a story behind it.”

“I mean,” He shrugged, trying to play it off, “Not much more than he accidently broke into my shed when the armor crashed that one time. And then he just stayed in touch.”

It was the story they had officially gone with when introducing Harley and Abbie to the press, and while there was a lot more too it- like how Harley had helped him reboot the armor- but they figured a nice layer of glaze over the detail would help keep the kids privacy. The rest of the students gawked at him as if he was the shiniest toy on the shelf.

“Is it true he gave you a bomb to fight people with?”

Harley spat out a laugh, loud and fake, “Not at all! He did teach me how to punch way later, though, maybe his seventh time comin round for dinner with Pepper to talk to my mom and us.”

The kids seemed to inhale at the mention of their mom. While they hadn’t directly said it in any of the interviews they had done, the media had figured out pretty quickly that his mom was dead. Thankfully none of the interviewers had really mentioned it.  
  
“So your mom is dead? How did she die?”

The entire class went silent and the grin slipped off of Harley’s face, but just as quickly was placed with a bitter sad smile. Luckily, Mrs. Allen stepped in, “Mr. Thompson, that is inappropriate.”

Harley gave a more forced laugh, “Its fine.”

Almost everyone in the room looked uncomfortable, but Harley figured this would pass. It probably had too, since he would be in class with these people until June.

“Either way,” Mrs. Allen’s voice was no nonsense, “Michelle, please raise your hand.”

A girl in the back who was reading a book looked up in indifference, before placing her hand up and returning to her book. Mrs. Allen look like she wanted to roll her eyes, but didn’t and said to Harley, “You can sit in the seat next to her.”

Harley made a move to go to  the back, in the middle of the rows, smiling at a few people who were smiling at him. It wasn’t that he liked the attention, but he knew that as Tony Stark’s new son there was a probable chance they thought he was just like Tony, so he wanted to keep up that classic Tony Stark Swagger (™) just to prove something. To who? Himself, mostly.

He gave a nod to the girl- Michelle- which she ignored. He was actually kind of grateful for that. He turned to the front of class, and ignored the fact that everyone kept glancing back at him.

Mrs. Allen sighed, before coughing, in an attempt to regain the class’ attention, “Okay so let’s talk Trig Identities.”

Harley got out his notebook and started to learn.

 

 

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Middle of the Beginning of the First Day of School_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

 

Harley made it to his chemistry class with little problem, but that was mostly because chemistry class was just right up the stairs that were across from Mrs. Allen’s classroom. He was thankfully one of the first people in the classroom. Upon entering the teacher looked up, “Ah, You must be…?”

“Harley Keener-Stark, sir,” He said, moving to put his bag down at a one of the tables that was off on the side, close enough where he could pay attention, but not close enough to draw attention.

The teacher made no move of introducing himself, and Harley assumed he would have a few minutes of quiet nothingness before the rest of the class came in. People started to trickle in, but Harley just ignored them and their looks of ‘whos that’ and ‘isn’t that..’ in favor of checking his phone.

Peter hadn’t messaged him, but he didn’t care.

 

 

[IronMansMechanic](https://ironmansmechanic.tumblr.com/): so far it is a going

IronMansMechanic: someone asked abt my mom like wow rude

IronMansMechanic: but also im like supper nervous because i dont know anyone and do not have any friends and that is a no good

[IronMan-DidNothingWrong](https://ironman-didnothingwrong.tumblr.com/): You’re doing great, Mecha! As for me, I am not having a good morning at all. My Pre-Calc class had this sub- Mr. Garret or something- and he spent the entire time dronning on and on and on and being annoying.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Wait, brb, I’m about to get to my Chemistry class.

 

Harley looked up from his phone, grinning because of how fast Peter had texted back. No matter what time it was, or what he was doing, Peter always responded. It made him feel all warm and fluffy on the inside. Almost as warm in fluffy when he made eye contact with the cute guy from the hallways, as he walked into the classroom.

He felt his stomach swoop down into his feet, as the cute guy actually made his way over to him, giving him a weird look.

And just as quickly the spell was broken when the asshole opened his mouth, “Uh, hey, um,  I’m really sorry, but that’s usually where me and my friend sit.”

Any attraction Harley had felt immediately slipped away, and for a second he was almost awed. Awed that this disturbingly cute boy had the fucking nerve to pull that bullshit. Honestly, Harley had only seen the ‘lol sorry that’s my seat’ done in poorly written avenger fanfics that Harley and Peter made fun of. And for some reason, the fact that this guy just told him that, kind of annoyed him. And when Harley was annoyed he was known to be a little… much, but that was fine because this was a brand of fanfiction trope that he hated.

He took a breath, and put on a big and fake smile, “Really now?”

“Uh,” The guy fidgeted. And for a moment, he actually felt bad for him, but then he was reminded by the devil on his shoulder that this dumbass had just actually pulled the whole, ‘this is my seat’ thing, “Kind of?”

“Cool. Mind if I borrow it for a bit?”

“Um, Maybe? Its my seat.”

Harley snorted, a grin that he knew he learned from the grin that Tony made when he was playing a boardgame and just passed all of the other players pressed to his lips, “Sorry, bud, but that’s to bad. Seeing as I am currently sitting here, class starts in about, one minute, and your friend wasn’t here to save your seat, I’m gonna sit in it.”

The kid got a weird look on his face- which somehow still managed to look pretty attractive on his handsome fucking face- before the other guy from the morning showed up, and looked at Harley with wide eyes again, “Heeeeyyy, Peter. Um, Hi, uh, Harley Keener-Stark.”

“Harley Keener-Stark?” The kid, Peter his brain supplied, squeed, turning to the guy startled.

“Yep,” Harley sad popping the P. It was kind of getting annoying having people refer to him as a Stark and them immediately act like he was some sort of portal to Tony Stark, “That’s the name, currently.”

“Um, yeah,” The guy chucked, “I’m Ned by the way- I’m uh, in your first class.”

“Oh yeah! You sit at the front next to asshole number one, right?”

“Asshole number- Flash?”

Harley nodded, “Asking a freshly orphaned kid about his dead mom, talk about rude.”

Peter- but not to be confused with his Peter that probably was texting him right now- made a face, “Yeah, he’s like that.”

“Honestly,” Harley purred, sending a smirk to Peter, “Better to ask about my dead mom, than to be that dick head that thinks he had a claim to seats. One of them is rude, but the other is just annoying.”

Peter’s reaction was immediate, a bright red blush on his ears, “Wha- you- that’s not-”

“Class,” The teacher drawled, “Please take your seat. We have a lesson to start.”

“Buh-bye,” Harley did a mini wave to Peter, “You should probably sit down somewhere, bud.

The look of slight anger on Peter’s face satisfied him more than anything in his life. He wouldn’t say he lived for causing people to be troubled, but he wouldn’t say it wasn’t one of the biggest perks in his life. And for some reason- which was probably unjustified- this Peter kid just irked him right into annoyance. Meaning that now that Peter was successfully irked, Harley was satisfied.

“Well,” The teacher, who Harley still didn’t know the name of, droned on, “Today is a little bit of a free for all. There will be a point system, otherwise, just say the answer if you know it.”

He pressed a button on a remote and a powerpoint in the background started up, reading ‘What is not true about acid-base indicators?’

This was easy, so he figured he’d take one for them team and started to speak, but a voice beat him too it, “The notion that Acid base Indicators are strong acids.”

He didn’t need to look at Peter to know he was glaring at Harley, but Harley turned around anyways, made eyes contact with Peter, who was glaring lightly at Harley. And he would admit, he kind of deserved that. He was a bit of a dick to Peter. But unfortunately, Harley was the kind of dick that didn’t mind getting his hands a little dirty and kicking some kids ass because this was a challenge now, and Harley did not lose.

He turned back to the front, competitiveness burning in his gut. Bring it on Peter. Bring. It. On.

 

 

 

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Lunch of The First Day of School_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

 

Harley’s next two classes were fairly uneventful, and thank god lunch came soon. He was still steaming about chemistry class. The unspoken challenge that Parker- he had learned that Peter’s last name was Parker during the forty five minutes of them answering every question-  had gone on the entire class time, and at the end of it, it was revealed that they had exactly the same amount of points. Probably because whatever cruel god there was up there hated Harley with a passion. It was whatever though.

The two next classes where so uneventful that he literally forgot what they were. The girl from his first class, Michelle, had sat next to him in both. Not on purpose but more of a, ‘hey this dumbass didn’t try to talk to me in the first/last class meaning that he probably won’t try now’ and was, yeah, pretty accurate. He figured if he had nothing, he had a vague acquaintance in her, and one in Ned. Ned had also been in his last class, and they had both spent the entire class talking about stuff. Like Star Wars. And why Legos were badass.

But then Lunch had come, and Harley had never felt his hunger go away as fast as it did in that moment. He was stuck standing in a cafeteria filled with no one he knew, with a bag of god knows what kind of food. And he probably would have stayed there, standing in the middle of the cafeteria feeling lost and alone, if he hadn’t seen Michelle slip out the door of the lunch room to go sit outside, and right now that sounded like the best idea.

So hesitantly he slipped outside, trying to ignore some of the stares he was getting from a few people in the cafeteria. He silently followed Michelle out into the cold gripping his bag so hard his knuckles turned white. He didn’t really know why he was so nervous, he just knew that he was. Michelle sat down under a tree not too far from the windows of the Cafeteria, and he slowly walked up to her.

She glance up from her book as he approached, "So like, do you make a habit of following people around?"  
  
"Yeah, obviously. How else would I have gotten adopted by Tony stark."  
  
Michelle snorted, "You realize that doesn’t make you cool right?"  
  
"Well no shit," Harley grinned at her, boyish and charming, "But since everyone else around me- my old friends, the media, everyone- has decided that suddenly I’m hot shit, guess I'm hot shit."  
  
"Pfft." Michelle spat, "That’s fucking ridiculous."  
  
"And you're not even the one that had to go through it,” He felt himself deflate a little bit. Michelle clearly didn’t care who he was or what he was, so long as he wasn’t annoying, “Harley Keener, by the way.”

“Michelle Jones,” She hesitated for a moment, before deciding on something, “You can call me MJ.”

Harley nodded and sat down next to her, taking out the brown paper bag that he had gotten for lunch, “So, Good Omens huh?”

“Yeah,” MJ put her book down, one eyebrow raised, as if she was surprised Harley had read it, “Neil Gaiman’s best work if you ask me.”

“I’m gonna have to agree with you there. Crowley is iconic.”

Michelle grinned, or at least kind of did, “See but Aziraphale is better.”

“Oh really now? And why is that?” Harley grinned at her, preparing mentally for a debate he had been having with Joyce since seventh grade.

The talk continued throughout the lunch period, and while it wasn’t explicitly stated, he knew that he had a friend in her now. And he was kind of really happy about it. Ever since the announcement, all of his friends back home- which was really only Ethan and Joyce- had pretty much stopped fighting him on things. But now he had someone that was willing to fight him on things in that way that friends do.

It was nice.

 

 

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Lunch of The First Day of School_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

 

 

IronMansMechanic: my gym class is having a free day

IronMansMechanic: so guess what that means

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Let me guess, you’re gonna pester me the entire time?

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Good, because I am having the w o r s t day ever.

IronMansMechanic: oh really,,,, poooooor baby

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha, it’s not even funny, there’s this new kid, and he was totally trying to one up me in chemistry and I had to defend my place as top of the class. Not to mention he’s in my gym class- which ditto on the free period thing- and he’s talking to one of my friends and my /best/ irl friend is like ‘yeah he’s pretty cool.’

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Spoiler alert here, he’s not.

IronMansMechanic: it sounds to me like your just jealous of this guy talking to your friends

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I am not!

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: And the worst part is he’s grinning and when he grins he’s hot- what an asshole.

IronMansMechanic: oh yes  
  
IronMansMechanic: how dare other people be hotter than you peter

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: You, sir, are an asshole.

IronMansMechanic: yeah du

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Abjfsfjefejskf no you’re not, I’m sorry. I’m just pissy.

IronMansMechanic: lmao dude i really am but even then

IronMansMechanic: it sounds to me you have a crush on this guy and are envious that hes so much smarter and cooler than you

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Hey Mecha??

IronMansMechanic: ye

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Fucking die.

IronMansMechanic: i wish lmao

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha, babe, we talked about this.

IronMansMechanic: HJFKSLFASJLFJAKL SHUSH

 

 

“Hey, Harley right?”

Harley glanced up. The guy who had asked about his mom that morning was standing in front of him, in the same position Draco Malfoy was when he had met Harry Potter for the first time. His skin crawled. Oh this was not going to end well for him and he could feel it.

“Uh, yeah,” he glanced at MJ who was snickering behind her book. So no help from her, he guessed.

The kid stuck his hand out, “Flash Thompson, I’m in your first period.”

“Yeah. I noticed.”

He had expected the comment to gain some sort of apology from Flash, since he was the dumbass that had asked about his mom, but Flash just grinned, “Good to know I’m a noticeable person.”

MJ snorted, and Harley sent her a look, begging her to help him get out of this. She didn’t, but she did get up and leave. The traitor.

“I was actually talking about,” Harley drawled, trying to mimic the way Pepper cornered people when they did something that she didn’t like, “the question you asked… but sure, you’re plenty noticeable.”

Instead of having the good sense to look ashamed, Flash smiled widder, “Cool. Either way, wanna hang out?”

“Um-”

“So that’s a yes?” Flash sat down next to him, a little bit too close for comfort if Harley was honest, “Good because I was thinking we could hang at your place.”

“Wai-”

“You know, it’s so cool that you got adopted by Tony Stark. Maybe you could show me and my friends the armor?” Flash’s smile managed to look even sleezier than Harley thought possible.

“Well, actually-”

“Hey Harley,” Ned said, coming to his rescue, as he walked towards the two of them with MJ striding next to him and Peter hesitantly following, “Me and MJ need your help with something over there. You know. On the other side of the gym. Away from here. From this spot.”

“Okay,” Harley grinned, moving past Flash, “I’m cool with that.”

He started to walk with the three others, but Flash grabbed his wrist, “So, how about those plans?”

“Um-”

“Actually, Eugene,” MJ spoke in a annoyed tone of voice, “Harley has stuff to do with us after school.”

“He does?”

“I do?”

“Oh yeah,” MJ said, shoving her elbow into Peter’s side, “Remember? We said we would show him Queens.”

Peter seemingly got the message and nodded, “Yep, we uh, we did say that.”

“Shut up, Penis,” Flash snorted, “Harley doesn’t have to hang out with you guys if he wants actual friends and not the nerd squad.”

Harley pulled his wrist out of Flash’s grip, “I think I can choose my own friends for myself.”

“Lets go, guys,” Peter made a motion to walk away, and Harley was glad that this trove of the nerd squad didn’t call him out for the blatant Harry Potter reference.

“Man, what an ass wipe,” Harley muttered to MJ, as they walked away, “Seriously, talk about pushy.”

“What the fuck did you just say Parker?!”

All four of them looked at a steaming Flash who was looking directly at Peter, who hadn’t said anything. Then it hit them and they all looked at Harley because Harley was the dumbass that had said something.

“Flash,” Harley said, hands held in a ‘I surrender’ motion, “Peter didn-”

“Repeat what you said, Penis Parker!” Flash  screeched, stepping closer, completely ignoring Harley’s words, “No seriously, do you think you’re fucking better than me or something?”

“Eugene, Peter is better than you.”

“Shut up, freak, no one asked you,” Flash- wait his name was _Eugene_? Amazing. Harley was already planning to carve it into a potato and fire it at him. Fantastic.- screeched at the top of his lungs, “Just say your sorry, Parker.”

“But I didn’t say anything!”

For some reason this seemed to set Flash off, and he scrambled closer and threw a punch. The entire thing was ridiculously anticlimactic however as Peter seemed to see it coming and grabbed his wrist and managed to throw him on the ground. Everyone who had been paying attention looked at Peter in shock but all Harley could manage to do was laugh really hard

Of course this brought Peter Parker’s glare- which was more of a pout, and was really cute- to him. Harley smiled sheepishly smiled and swallowed down his laughter in an attempt to make it seem like he hadn’t just gotten Flash to punch Peter. Peter however, did not seem to get the memo, instead in favor of glaring at him, again in that pout glare of his.

He let Flash, who was sitting on the floor looking stunned, go and made a move to storm off. No one followed him, until Ned made a sound, “Huh. Didn’t know Peter could do that. Ha ha.”

Everyone one again started to move around, talking about what had just happened, but Harley just looked to where Peter had stormed off, “He really doesn’t like me, huh?”

“Don’t take it too seriously,” Ned clapped him on the shoulder, “Peter’s a big sweetheart when you get to know him.”

“Uh-huh, I’m sure.” Harley glanced at his phone, six new messages from his Peter on the screen. He glanced back up again, looking at MJ, “So where you serious about doing something after school?”

“What?” MJ looked kind of confused, “I mean, sure. Where do you want to hang out?”

Harley grinned, “We can go to my place.”

“The Stark Pad. Nice.”

“Wait,” Ned made a T motion with his hands, “Am I included in this?”  

“Yeah of course, you and Peter both,” Harley smiled at him, “You know, if Peter decides that I’m not his worst nightmare.”

MJ snorted, “Too late for that.”

“Fine by me.”

 

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_After The first Day of School_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

“Kay so, this is Stark Tower,” Harley said as the elevator doors opened, “Hey Friday, is Tony in the Kitchen?”

“Yes, boss is in the kitchen with Colonel Rhodes,” A voice emitted from somewhere in the elevator, startling Ned. MJ just raised an eyebrow, “Lady Boss and Abbie are out getting their nails done after the day that Abbie had at school.”

“Lord, I don’t even wanna know,” Harley sighed, and turned to the two of his friends, “Guys, this is Friday, Tony’s AI. Friday this is Ned and MJ, my friends.”

“Dude- you have an AI, in your house,” Ned sounded like he was fangirling at the very idea.

Harley grinned, “Yeah, I also have a Tony Stark in my house.”

Ned made a noise that sounded like a keyboard smash as he realized that he was probably gonna meet Tony Stark. Michelle on the other hand just sighed, “You’re still not cool, Keener.”

“I’m not trying to be, Jones.”

The elevator door opened, leading directly into the Stark’s living room on the 60th floor. It’s the floor that the Keener children had claimed as their own, which now meant that Tony and Pepper lived here too. So it had been dubbed their home of basic operations by Abbie who really had just wanted to call something a hobo since she had gotten to New York. Why?? Harley had no clue and wasn’t sure he wanted to know what went through his sisters mind.

“Well,” He stepped into the living room, “Home sweet home or something. Come on, we’ll stop by the kitchen to get a snack first.”

Ned and MJ walked behind him as he entered the kitchen, where Rhodey and Tony were sitting muttering with a tense air, which quickly turned into comical the second Harley stepped in the room, “Hey kid, how was school?”

“Miserable, obviously,” Harley rolled his eyes, “Tony, Rhodey, this is MJ and Ned.”

Both of the teens waved and Tony blinked, “Wow first day and you already have friends?”

“Some of us can play nice with others.”

“Kid,” Rhodey laughed, “I still have bruises from your mark seventeen potato gun.”

Ned gaped at him, “Harley you shot Iron Patriot with a potato gun?!”

“Nice,” MJ said, giving him a nod of approval as Rhodey sighed and mumbled how it was War Machine and not Iron Patriot.

Harley made a motion to go to the pantry, grabbing out some candy that he and Abbie had stocked up on. Choosing a bag of chips or three, he turned to his friends who were still standing in the doorway, “Anyway, y’all want anything?”

“Yes,” Ned stepped towards the pantry, helping Harley grab some type of food so they could eat stuff. He seemingly either hadn’t noticed the brief slip into country or didn’t care. MJ on the other hand did notice it.

“Harley did you just say y’all?” MJ looked disgusted, “Dude.”

“MJ, I’m from Tennessee.”

“Country boy-”

“I looooooooooove yooooooooooooooouuuuu.” Harley finished before MJ could, grinning at her, “Bleeehh.”

Tony grinned and glanced at Rhodey and suddenly Harley felt a wave of dread envelop his body. Everyone in the room sensed what was coming as Ned got a look of unmatched glee, that was only beat out by Rhodey’s shit eating grin. MJ looked on in a detached state of complete horror, as Tony grinned, “So love huh?”

Harley snapped, and before he could truly think about what he was doing he went for it, “Hey Tony?”

“Yes?”

“Ball is life.”

Tony raised an eyebrow, “What does playing basketball have to do anything? Are you joining the team or something?”

“No, Tony,” Harley handed Ned some food, and left the room.

Ned and MJ were howling in laughter as they followed him out of the room. Well Ned was howling, MJ was more chuckling under her breath at the vine reference. As they left they could hear Rhodey laugh clear and deep as Tony muttered, ‘ball is… ball is life?’

Harley chuckled and led his friends to his room.

 

_Three Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_That Night_

_Six Months Until the Incident_

 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: So basically he almost got me punched, and then laughed at me! Who does that?! It’s a shame that he’s so rude, because he’s cute and I’m angry.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: And then those traitors went over to his house.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Honestly, I might have gone but I was busy. Still! Rude.

IronMansMechanic: dude ur actually so jealous

IronMansMechanic: my day on the other hand was both shit and great

IronMansMechanic: i made two new friends

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: That’s good!

IronMansMechanic: but there best friend since like childhood hates me

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: What did you do.

IronMansMechanic: he pulled a fanfic trope

IronMansMechanic: so i called him an ass and then we got into a bit of a competition and then he blamed me for something that happened in gym that i had no control of

IronMansMechanic: but hes so cute????????? his glare is like a pout and its adorable

IronMansMechanic: to bad hes an ass

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Okay so you did almost nothing wrong but be your lovable self, and he got offended?  
  
IronMansMechanic: ye

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Why are all the cute guys assholes??

IronMansMechanic: yeah i  dont know.

IronMansMechanic: also i came out to my guardian kinda

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: !!!

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: How did it go?

IronMansMechanic: well you know that ‘ball is life, so youre playing basketball’ vine

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha, please tell me you didn’t.

IronMansMechanic: i did lol

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha. Are you serious. Are you actually serious.

IronMansMechanic: yeah

IronMansMechanic: it was actually pretty chill

IronMansMechanic: i wasnt really worried about t though bc i know for a goddamn fact he was in love with bruce banner for like a year

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: That’s good!

IronMansMechanic: i kind of just

IronMansMechanic: i wish my mom had known that i was gay

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I know, Mecha.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: And I hope you know, she would have still loved you. No matter what.

IronMansMechanic: i know

IronMansMechanic: Hey Peter?

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Yeah?

IronMansMechanic: You’re my best friend.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: You’re my best friend too, Mecha.

IronMansMechanic: lol thats gay

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Aaaaand the moments gone.

 

They continued talking for awhile, at least until Harley had fallen asleep. A warm feeling was bubbling in his chest as he drifted off from Peter and his conversation. His Peter always did know just what to say to make him happy.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up @ Peachy-Keener, and feel free to tell me what you think 
> 
> Also, a special thank you to emrysczerny for beta reading and for the wonderful Parkner art. Thank you so much for everything!


	3. All Star by Smash Mouth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Parker was going down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya, Hiya! So, I really really love this chapter in all of its glory. I knew I was gonna do this chapter, but I thought it was going to be like the seventh but I figured out what I need to do. 
> 
> Once Again, I made a Parkner/ Parley (?) Playlist on spotify:  
> https://open.spotify.com/user/hsvsusvslv/playlist/4RHPhJ5minJk5cRcgiing2?si=Q0wfmRrCQO-prRCwG6wKMA
> 
> Please check it out! Also, check out their blogs on tumblr ;) 
> 
> I HOPE YALL LIKE IT!!
> 
> Also, Harley, MJ, and Peter (and Ned) talk on discord if you're wondering what they're using.

_Two Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Four Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Day One of The Great Prank WAR_

_Five Months Until the Incident_

 

Harley actually didn’t mind Peter Parker as much as he pretended he did. He really didn’t like Peter that much- the only Peter he had room for in his heart was _his_ Peter, who was somewhere else in New York city, living his best life- but as far as people he had to interact with on a daily basis, Peter was tolerable. The rest of his classmates didn’t seem to understand that he was a real person and not just the child of Tony Stark who appeared on talk shows every once in a while because people wanted to know what Iron Mans kids were like. Peter on the other hand, didn’t seem to care about the fact that it was Iron Man, so much as that Harley got access to the labs and got to work with Tony on stuff. But otherwise he didn’t care.

And he would admit, MJ forcing him to sit with Peter and Ned was kind of nice. The four of them seemed to click, even though Peter and Harley never stopped Bickering. No matter what MJ said, it was absolutely not flirting. Because no matter how cute Peter Parker was, he was still an ass and Harley didn’t like asses. Well actually, he liked asses quite a bit. He didn’t like dick heads. Wait. No. He didn’t like jerkwads. And he hated even more that the extent of his insults for Peter Parker was Jerkwad.

The moral of it all, was that he wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of Peter B Parker. And Peter B. Parker wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of him. Well actually, they were really close to being friends, but he wasn’t exactly sure that Peter wanted to be friends with him and in return, he wasn’t sure he wanted to be friends with Peter. He was weird like that. He couldn’t want to be friends with someone that really didn’t want to be friends with him. And that kind of sucked.

A part of him really liked Peter, actually. He reminded him of someone- he wasn’t sure who, but he knew it was someone- and he was genuinely a really interesting person to talk to when they weren’t arguing about something ridiculous and weird. A part of him felt like in a different world they could have been best friends. But this wasn’t another world, this was his world, where he was friends with MJ and Ned but not Peter Parker.  Because Peter didn’t like him. And Peter was a dickwad.

Either way, sitting with Ned, Peter, and MJ was a wild ride and a kind of fun experience if he was honest. It wasn’t friendly but by the third day of him tagging onto their lunch times, it had become comfortable. And nice. But that didn’t change the fact that Peter Parker was a major dickwad who was going down.

Or at least that’s what he thought as he sat down in the spot he always sat at and felt the smooth texture of fucking jelly on his ass. The snickers from Ned and MJ told him everything he needed to know, as Peter sat back down with his eyes wide.

“Peter.”

“Um, Yes?”

“Want to tell me what the fuck I’m sitting in?”

“My aunt May’s strawberry jelly…?”

Harley inhaled, “That’s what I thought you would say.”

Harley took off his jacket, and stood, wrapped it around his waist and flipped Peter off, “Game on, Parker, game on.”

“Game one with what?” Peter wasn’t looking him in the eye, and Harley realized this was probably the first time they had seen his arms. And the treasure trove of freckles that existed there.  

A small baby part of him was actively so satisfied with the fact that Peter Parker was flustered at the sight of his freckles. A bigger more active part of him, on the other hand was scheming. And scheming hard, “You just declared a prank war.”

A thought washed over him, and he grinned, in a way that he was pretty sure made him look disturbed but he couldn’t care less. He now had access to money. And lots of it. Not to mention the school couldn’t touch him since Tony was pretty much putting the place on the map. Oh Harley was going to have fun. This was gonna be amazing.

“Wait, Harley,” Peter gulped, eyes wide- probably with the same realization that Harley had just had, “It was an accident.”

“Nope,” Harley grinned even wider, “You’ve declared this war. Prepare, Peter Parker, because I intend to win.”  

Ned was snorting, “Dude, no way.”

“Yes way,” Harley smiled, “And remember Parker, I don’t lose.”

He stepped away from the table, heading to the bathroom so he could give a call to Friday. He needed a new pair of pants and a listing for all of the Mariachi bands in the area that were on standby. And maybe a few metric tons of glitter. It really depended on if the Mariachi bands were available.

He opened his texts.

 

 

Harley:

hey

tony

how much does a mariachi band cost

Tony:

To buy or rent?

 

Harley:

both

Tony:

Wait, hold on, why?

 

Harley:

ive been challenged

i need to prove myself

Tony:

Wait what have you been challenged too?

 

Harley:

two words

PRANK

WAR

Tony:

This is why Abbie is my favorite

 

Harley:

:(

Tony:

Just saying

 

Harley:

why dont you love me tony

Tony:

Because you pull shit like this

 

Harley:

that is a completely fair statemnet if were being honest

Tony:

Baseline price for a mariachi band is about 350 an hour

I’ll rent you out one

Be nice, though.

Who is this Prank war on anyway

 

Harley:

Peter Fucking Parker

he put jelly on my seat

he challenged me

hes going tf down

Tony:

Parker huh?

Smart kid, but dumb to provoke you

 

Harley:

uh doy

Tony:

How would you feel if I asked him to intern for me

He’d be working in the lab with us

 

Harley:

No.

Tony:

And I guess I have to now huh?

 

Harley:

tony n o

 

_Two Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Four Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Day Two of The Great Prank WAR_

_Five Months Until the Incident_

 

No one knew who sent the Mariachi Band except Harley, but the fact that they were there and not being escorted off premise was the best thing that Harley Keener had ever experienced. He wasn’t sure if Tony was actually being serious when he had told him he would rent the band, but now he thanked the lord that Tony Stark was his dad, because holy fuck. This was the best thing he had ever seen.

Everyone was staring at Peter in confusion, as he stormed through the hallway in an attempt to lose the band. No such luck however as they trailed after him at just as quick of a pace playing their songs. The whole scene was ridiculous, and it made Harley want to record it, much like everyone else was doing. It was especially funny, when Peter caught Harley’s eyes from where he was already seated in the cafeteria. He was fuming.

He stormed towards Harley, “What the fuck?”

“Huh?” Harley shouted, obviously having heard him, “You’re gonna have to speak up! I can’t hear you over the lovely music!”

“Harley I know you did this!”

“Nonsense!” He grinned at the Mariachi band, “Hello Jose, Eduardo, David, Gary, and Jaime. Sounding beautiful today!”

The band grinned at Harley and began to play louder.

MJ grimaced at the noise, but Ned was having a blast with it. For him this prank war would probably be amazing. Watching the two of them go at it was already enough entertainment for him but now it was going to be so cool. Like actually so funny.

Harley, clearly having developed the power of telepathy at a young age, grinned at Ned as he thought of this, and shouted to him, “You’re welcome for the entertainment.”

“That I had nothing to do with,” He winked at Peter, motioning for him to join him at the table.

Peter got a stranger look on his face, but sat down anyway, “I want you to know I hate you.”

“What was that?” Harley cupped his ear, “I can’t hear you over the song.”

“You’re an asshole.”

“I will admit to that.”

“Dickhead.”

“Well mama always told me you are what you eat.”

“You’re disgusting.”

“And yet you still sit with me.”

“Only because MJ wants you to sit here.

“Oh Peter,” Harley sighed, giving him his puppy dog eyes as he swiped a french fry off his tray, “Why don’t we just enjoy the music for a bit?”

The blush that overcame Peter Parker's cheeks was more satisfying than anything else that had happened that day.

 

By the time he had gone home, Peter had looked expectantly frazzled and annoyed as he huffed his way out of the school next to Ned who was still laughing about the entire interaction during their lunch period. But now he had to plan, and planning was hard. Especially because he had no idea what he could get away with and what he couldn’t.

By the time he got to the kitchen, Rhodey and Pepper were talking in hushed voices about the accoards, which stopped immediately as Harley walked in. As if he didn’t know about the Sokovia Accords. They were a public UN document and there’d been several articles about them. Harley really didn’t get why they all acted like it was a taboo topic. Instead of calling them out on it, he just grinned and grabbed a poptart from the pantry, “Heya.”

“Hey kid,” Rhodey smiled at him, “Heard there was a bit of a show at your school today.”

Pepper groaned, “Yes. Harley please tell me why I had to pay off seven hours of Mariachi band.”

“Prank war,” Harley made a move to sit with them, “It knows no bounds.”

“Oh god,” Rhodey looked at Pepper, “He really is just a little Tony isn't he?”

“Unfortunately.”

“Speaking of Tony,” Harley glanced around, mouth full of poptart, “Where is he?”

“He and Abbie went out.”

Rhodey snorted, “He thought he was being so smooth but literally everyone knows that he’s trying to buy Pep something nice.”

“Maybe,” Pepper was smiling, “But still. It’s good for him to bond with Abbie.”

Harley swallowed down his food, “You’re right. She kind of needs a dad right now.”

Neither of them asked what he meant by that. They both knew that Abbie was having a harder time adjusting to school in New York than she would admit. She still didn’t have that many friends who were her friends and not just people who were in awe that she was Iron Man’s new kid. It kind of made Harley mad, but what could he do about ten year olds being little shits? And either way, he was pretty sure it didn’t matter because she had him, and he would always be there for her.

“Either way,” Rhodey sighed, a smile on his lips as he remembered the good old days, “We can all be grateful that Harley doesn’t have access to live animals. Remember when Tony pulled one over on his board by hiring a live Monkey and put it in a fake goatee and a suit!”

“Rhodey, do not put any ideas in his head!” Pepper grumbled, turning back to her friend.

“A monkey you say?”

“James Rhodes! See what you’ve done!”

 

 

_Two Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Four Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Day Three of The Great Prank WAR_

_Five Months Until the Incident_

 

 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Hey so, if you were going to prank someone, how would you do it?

IronMansMechanic: hire a mariachi band obviously

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha, no!

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Also, I am poor. I don’t have the money for that.

IronMansMechanic: do you know where the nearest craft store is

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Yeah?

IronMansMechanic: how much do they sell glitter for

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I mean, probably like 50 cents a bottle, why?

IronMansMechanic: youre gonna need like 50 of them

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha, thats like 25 dollars worth of glitter.

IronMansMechanic: put it in a bucket and dump it on him

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Oh my god.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Mecha you’re a genius.

IronMansMechanic: as much as i want to take credit for this

IronMansMechanic: i saw it on teen wolf

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: NOT THAT I’M JUDGING YOU

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: BUT W H Y ARE YOU WATCHING TEEN WOLF

IronMansMechanic: WELL WHY AREN’T YOU

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: That’s actually a fair point.

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Either way,

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I can’t believe I’m saying this but…

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Thank you, teen wolf for giving Mecha the brains to tell me how to prank.

IronMansMechanic: HJFSLFSHJFS DIE

 

Harley had gotten used to sitting with Ned, MJ and Peter in the mornings before school started. They always sat right under the stairs and would proceed to either; A) Copy off of each others homework or B) Hang out for a second. And honestly, Harley kind of enjoyed the later more. Peter and him always got into some sort of soft bickering, and MJ would roll her eyes and make snarky remarks, and Ned would butt in to back both of them up. It was routine. It was nice.

It was so nice, that he actively got to school early these days just so that he could hang around them for more time in the mornings, since the three of them seemingly got there at ungodly times in the morning. Like 7:20 in the morning. He was not McLoving it, but he did McLove his friends so he was willing to show up and be there. Even when it was raining so hard that stepping outside of the car soaked him to the bone, like it was doing this morning

This particular morning, though, Peter wasn’t there when he got there. Harley glanced around, “Where’s Parker?”

“When did you start caring?” MJ glanced up from her book, and scooching over so Harley could sit next to her, “I thought you didn’t like him.”

Harley resisted the urge to sputter, “I don’t!”

“Uh huh,” Ned grinned at him, “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

“Both of you are ungrateful heathens.”

MJ looked at him, brow raised, “Are we supposed to be grateful for you and Peter’s constant flirting?”

“We are not flirting!”

“I can settle this,” Ned said, grinning, “You two totally are.”

“You- thats- Y’all are both wrong!”

Ned sighed grinning, “Ah young love. Either way, did you see that they canceled Dirk Gently?”

“Wait they did what,” Harley gaped at Ned, doing his best impression of a trout, “They canceled it? But it was so good!”

“Yeah.” Ned shook his head looking disappointed, “It was the perfect blend of weird magic shit and scifi.”

MJ sighed, “You both realize that Tony- your dad, Harley- has enough money to buy the studio and keep the show running right?”  
  
“You’re right bu-”

And that's when the glitter hit him.

A pound of glitter, in every single shade of the rainbow hit him. It trickled down from his wet hair, and stuck to his skin. He could taste the glitter in his mouth. And for a second, he was almost impressed. But then the realization of what just happened struck him and he glanced up, to the top of the stairs where Peter Fucking Parker was standing there with a bucket.

He was snickering, and he had a big smile and his face, and in all honesty if he hadn’t just had a pound of glitter thrown at him he would have been blushing at how cute Peter could be. To bad it was Peter fucking Parker, biggest jerkwad on the planet who had just dumped a pound of rainbow fucking glitter at him. Fucking everywhere on him.

“Parker!” He shouted up, standing and storming up the stairs.

Peter didn’t even have the gull to look guilty as he grinned at Harley, “Yes, Harley?”

“What the fuck!”

“Why Harley,” Peter put on his best innocent face, “I didn’t do anything.”

Harley stopped in front of Peter, shoulders shaking because of a mixture of laughter and disbelief, “You’re holding the bucket, dumbass!”

Peter dropped the bucket and held up his hands, “No I’m not.”

“Peter.” Harley laughed, “I’m literally inhaling glitter this is not funny.”

“Then why are you laughing?”

“Because I’m gay, asshole!”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Rainbow glitter, dumbass.”

“So like,” MJ said loudly, aimed directly at the two boys at the top of the stairs, “Are we just going to sit here and watch them flirt?”

Ned smiled, and laughed loudly, “Dude its like watching a anime!”

“We are not flirting!”

“What- wha- We aren’t flirting!”

 

_Two Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Four Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Day Four of The Great Prank WAR_

_Five Months Until the Incident_

 

 

**Don’t Talk To me**

Harley, I’m just saying that you asking what peters favorite disney movie

Is weird

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

No its not youll see

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

either way,

wouldnt Ned be the better choice to ask

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

ye but ned will tell peter

 

**Don’t talk to me**

Its emporers new grove

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

called it

 

**Don’t talk to me**

Do not buy a llama

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

MJ dont be stuped

im not gonna buy a llama

im gonna rent three llamas

 

**Don’t talk to me**

f r o m   w h e r e

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

there are so many places in new york renting out llamas its great

 

 

Harley loved the fact that New York city had a very wide variety of llamas tha were specially trained to find a certain scent and harass the person with that scent on them. It was such a weirdly specific quality for a llama to have, and it was even more specific that there were several shops dedicated to this. To the usage of llama noses to harass people. Just another reason to love New York.

What he did not like, however, was that he was going to have to hug Peter in order to plant the ball of flowers that these three particular llama’s liked in Peter’s bag. The main issue with this is he had never actually really touched Peter, and a hug coming out of nowhere would seem suspicious. He needed a way to trick Peter into holding him, long enough that he could plant the flowers in his backpack.

It hit him as they neared the school. He would have to look distraught so that Peter would just assume he was sad. Harley put on his best distressed face, trying to pull the saddest eyes he could. He was tearing up, and he could feel the blood rushing to his face. Perfect. Everything about this would make it look like he was and had been crying.

The school was mostly empty, the only people there were probably there for morning tutoring. Except for three people sitting at the staircase, which was still covered in glitter. As Harley came closer they all looked up. Peter and Ned stood up with wide eyes, at the tears in Harley’s eyes. He knew for a fact about how unusual this would be for them because, Harley was always smiling and laughing. He hadn’t let anyone but Tony see him on days where he actually felt sad, so this might come as a bit of a shock to them.

“Harley?” Peter’s eyes were wide and his brow was furrowed and he stepped forward, looking like he wanted to do something to help him, “Are you okay?”

Harley didn’t say anything but he threw himself onto Peter and started to cry. He was pretty good at fake crying, a skill he had long developed since he was six, and it usually worked pretty well. This time was no different.

What was different though, was that Peter mother fucking Parker hugged back. And it was warm, and nice, and he smelt like Coffee and Vanilla, and all Harley wanted to do was relax into his grip. He was strong, and he smelt good, and Harley kind of felt safe in his arms. He really just wanted to stay there. But he had a job to do. He let out a loud and pathetic sounding sob, and slipped his hand into the side pocket of Peter’s backpack and placed the flower blend there. And if he didn’t separate from Peter for a few more seconds, no one but him needed to know. No one needed to know how much Harley wanted to just be held by Peter, just for a few seconds. And suddenly the sobs he had been faking were real, and he could feel his body shake as he cried into Peter Mother Fucking Parkers shoulder. He couldn’t handle this. He couldn’t handle any of this.

He pulled away from Peter, and found that he couldn’t look him in the eye. Maybe it was the way that his hand lingered on Peter’s chest, or the fact that he had felt safe. He moved his hands to wipe away the tears in his eyes, as everyone stared at him with wide eyes. Harley picked himself up a bit, and let his chin wobble as he glanced at the two boys and MJ, before turning around and walking to his class at 7:50 even though class didn’t start until 8:20.

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

Are you okay?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Kind of.

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

Do you wanna talk about it?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

No.

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

Was all of that part of the plan?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

The crying was and the hug was and then the crying wasn’t and the hugging wasn’t.

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

Oh.

Are you okay?

 

Harley wasn’t gonna text the Llama guys to drop the llama’s that looked like Kuzco off at the school until lunch, but the bad part of this plan meant that he had to wait through his second period class. Which meant that Ned was sending him glances, and Peter was just staring at him. With wide concerned eyes. It didn’t help that Harley wasn’t engaging in the lesson during chemistry.

He just kept avoiding eye contact.

The class before lunch, though, he sent a text message to his guys who had the three llamas dressed like Kuzco from the Emperor's New Groove. And as he sat in his usual spot at lunch, Peter Parker came in. Three llamas dressed like Kuzco were trailing behind him. Peter looked at him, and immediately stormed towards him as everyone stared with wide eyes.

“How?”

Harley grinned, “How what?”

“How the hell,” Peter sat down, as the llamas nudged him towards Harley, “Did you get live llamas here?”

“I didn’t.”

Peter shot him a dry look, “Seriously?”

“He didn’t do it?” Ned sat next to them, “That doesn’t sound right.”

“Because it isn’t.” MJ didn’t even look up, but Harley could hear the grin in her voice.

The llama’s hummed, and one of them made a weird gurgling sound. Peter stared at Harley with eyes wide, “How.”

“A magician never tells his secrets.”

And with that Harley slid away from his friends, and walked away, tossing three apple slices their way, to which they gurgled happily. His stride continued past everyone else, who were now staring at him, seeming to be putting two and two together. Harley just grinned.

He managed to get out of gym class, and the rest of his classes, by calling Tony and saying he didn’t feel well. Because he really didn’t. As funny as the llama was, Harley just. Wasn’t feeling it. Especially after that morning where he had actually cried on Peter. For no reason.

It was supposed to be a joke, but it suddenly had become real. It just had. He had been shaking, and sobbing, and not okay. Which was weird because he was always okay. He had cried about his mom's death, but since the funeral he hadn’t cried because he was fine! And he was going to be okay! It was going to be okay, and he knew that, and he was okay, because he was Harley Keener.

Except he wasn’t sure he actually was because the second he had started crying he couldn’t stop. And he had cried into Peter Parker’s shoulder like a dumbass fool.

He wanted to talk to _his_ Peter. Because _his_ Peter would know what to do. About Peter Parker, and the fact that he had cried.

 

IronMansMechanic: Peter?

IronMansMechanic: Are you around?

IronMansMechanic: I’m taking the six minutes of nothing to mean you’re not.

IronMansMechanic: I’m going to talk anyway though, because I kind of need a friend.

IronMansMechanic: You know the guy? The one who doesn’t like me?

IronMansMechanic: I cried today. I cried and he held me in his arms and I don’t know why I cried, I just did. I just kept crying. And I don’t know why. I just don’t know.

IronMansMechanic: I don’t feel sad.

IronMansMechanic: Peter?

IronMansMechanic: Text me when you see this. Please.

 

By the time Peter responded, Harley had fallen asleep.

 

_Two Months until the Events of The Avengers Civil War_

_Four Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Day Five of The Great Prank WAR_

_Five Months Until the Incident_

 

 

As much as Harley wanted to beat Peter, he was willing to sacrifice all of that if it meant he could get back at Flash for being a dick. Because honestly, what was a prank war worth if he couldn’t prank an asshole that was harassing people and being rude? It wasn’t worth anything. Especially because Flash had started with harassing Harley, and then moved to harassing some poor girl.

Harley could handle Flash trying to fuck with him. That was all fine and dandy, because at the end of the day, if Harley really wanted too, he could probably kick Flash’s ass. Especially because Harley knew how to throw a punch and even more, Harley knew when to throw a punch. So even though Flash was making weird comments and was trying to be Harley’s ‘friend’, Harley didn’t do much more than avoid him.

But then Flash had stopped bothering Harley and went to go aggravate Miranda, a girl who was a little bit on the chubbier side but was really really nice. Unfortunately for her though, Flash considered any kind of girl that wasn’t a stick to be ugly and fucking fat. He was following her around making fat jokes the entire time, stuff like calling her an incoming whale. Normally, Harley wouldn’t care. But the thing was that normally he would also have fucking decked Flash the second he had went after anyone else.

Harley felt his eye twitch, and he sat up from doing his sit- ups. MJ raised an eyebrow at him as he turned towards Peter and Ned, “Hey Peter?”

“Yeah?” He sat up, “Please don’t sick another llama on me.”

“What- oh no, no llama’s this time.”

Peter looked at him, “Good because I don’t know how you did that.”

“Yeah, seriously,” Ned nodded, “They followed him home.”

“Oh, no,” MJ rolled her eyes, “A pet llama.”

“Either way!” Harley called, gaining all three of their attentions, “Peter, we need to call a truce.”

“What?” His eyes were wide, “But I haven’t gotten to pull my next prank!”

“Can it beat a llama?”

Harley grinned, “MJ’s right. I don’t think anything could beat the llamas.”

“He’s got a point,” Ned chuckled, sitting up.

“Shut up,” Peter grumbled, “Either way, why do we need to call a truce?”

“Because as fun as this is,” Harley pointed at flash, “I hate assholes, and as annoying as you are, you’re no asshole.”

“Ooohh,” Peter put together the thought process, “Wait so what do you want me to do?”

Harley tossed Peter his phone, “Add your discord.”

“Okay..?”

They made the plan during sixth period, right after gym, so that they could execute everything, perfectly.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

so heres the plan

im going to supply the both of us with sixteen cans of silly string

and then we can silly string dicks on his car

 

**Be With You**

You realize that this is kind of mean right?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

uh doy

 

**Be With You**

Oh yeah, this is Flash we’re talking about.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

uh doy

 

**Be With You**

So during eighth period right?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

ye ye

 

**Be With You**

And you’re sure that you can get the silly string?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

the fact that you doubt me is sad

plus i was originally planning to do this to you but then i realized you didnt have a car

 

**Be With You**

NDJSKLFBSAL DIE

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

lol i wish

 

**Be With You**

Harley.. No..

 

Forty minutes to the end of the day and it was show time. He shot Peter a message, to go ahead and get to Flash’s well beloved and well known car. He raised his hand, “Sir, can I go to the restroom?”

“Yes, yes, but hurry up.”

That was the exact opposite of what he’d be doing, he thought, grinning to himself as he brought his bag with him out of the classroom. The walk to Flash’s car was a short one, since he was luckily right near the door. Peter was already waiting there, fidgeting nervously.

“Hey,” Harley nodded, grinning at him, “I’m kind of surprised you didn’t chicken.”

Peter sighed, looking slightly defeated, “I’m kind of surprised I didn’t chicken either.”

Harley opened the door, smiling and motioning with his hand, “Well, let us begin.”

The journey to Flash’s car was easy and fast, since he was one of the only assholes at the school who dicked around and parked on the white line of two parking spaces, making it so that he had two spaces to himself. It was the perfect target. Harley reached it first, dropped his bag and brought out a can of silly string.

He handed one to Peter, “Question, though.”

“Yeah?”

“What is up with the whole ‘penis parker’ thing anyway?”

Peter groaned, “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

“Really?” Harley grinned, “That bad?”

“Yep.”

“Well let’s make him pay,” Harley shook up his can of silly string.

The actual art of silly string art was a wild and fun form of work. It was a dedicated and fun work, but it required focus. By the second dick, Harley had made a dick butt, and Peter had just spelled out the word dick on the hood of the car. It was silent but it was fun. It was kind of exhilarating honestly.  Peter and him made a good team, and quickly the sixteen cans of silly string were emptied off of Flash’s car.

Harley stepped back to enjoy their artwork, “Nice job Parker.”

“Not so bad yourself, Keener,” Peter grinned, before checking his watch, “We should probably get back to class.”

“You head back,” Harley waved him off, taking out his phone, “I’m gonna admire our handiwork for a second.”

“Alright.”

Peter turned to leave, and Harley smiled at his retreating form before calling out, “Hey Peter?”

“Yeah?” He paused, and looked back.

“Truce?”

“Truce.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what y'all think! (Especially abt the texting format)
> 
> A great thanks to emrysczerny on tumblr for helping me edit! 
> 
> Hit me up @ Peachy-Keener!


	4. She Just Laughed Because My Joke Lacked Cosmic Timing by Computer Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Abbie's birthday!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fjlasfbhejf sjfkl af I'm so excited for this chapter and the chapters that come next. I think its going to be great!  
> The Next few chapters im really ecited about!
> 
> Tell me what y'all think!
> 
> Also, beacuse i wanna clarify 
> 
> Tony is about 5'10 (It says he's 6'1 under the iron man wiki like nah) and Harley is about 5'7, Abbie about 4'5, Pepper about 5'6 (5'8 with heels). Peter starts this fic at 5'7 or 5'8 and by the time of the epilouge he's hit his growth spurt and is about 6'5 or 6'4 (HE A BIG BOY WHO'S DAD WAS ABOUT 6'6). Harley is 5'7 and has been 5'7 since seventh grade. Abbie ends up being about 5'2. (Shortness runs through the Keener family.)

_ One Month until the Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

_ Three Weeks Until Abbie’s Birthday _

 

“Harley, what do you think?” 

Harley glanced up from his phone, furrowing his brow at Ned, “Um, about what?” 

“The super nerds over there,” MJ drawled, “Are debating on whether the new star wars movies are good or not.” 

“Oh. Um. I like Finn’s character concept so, yeah.” 

And with that he turned back to furiously tapping on his phone. Ned and Peter exchanged looks, extremely concerned. They hadn’t been treading on thin ice around Harley since the crying and the hugging thing, but they hadn’t exactly been treating him like he was bullet proof. The tip toeing act was starting to annoy both MJ and Harley, but the two boys either didn’t notice or didn’t care. 

Still, MJ figured that she’d bite, “Anything up?” 

“Uh,” Harley glanced up, “Not really.”

“Not really is still something,” Ned poked at him, “You know you can trust us right?” 

“Uh, sure,” Harley raised an eyebrow at him but complied anyway, “It’s just that my sister’s birthday is coming up and she doesn’t want to do anything.” 

MJ looked up from her book, “So what?” 

“So this is the first birthday she’s had since our mom died,” mumbling, he glanced away from his friends, keeping his eyes locked on his phone, “And she used to make Abbie a homemade birthday cake each year. Abbie would invite over everyone in her class and they would all be in our living room eating cake and ice cream, and I’d break out the sleds and we would go mud sledding. Every single year without fail. And now..” 

He trailed off, his eyes sad. None of them had actually ever heard Harley talk about his hometown. MJ knew a bit about how after he had gotten adopted his friends had freaked out on him and started treating him like some sort of prince. She didn’t exactly know what happened to Abbie’s friends. And none of the three of them had actually ever met Abbie. 

He cleared his throat, “And now, we’re both in a new place and have no friends- well I have you guys, but Abbie doesn’t have any new friends, just bullies basically.” 

“What?” Peter looked at him, concerned, “Is she going to be okay.”

“Trust me,” Harley squirmed in his seat. It wasn’t that he was uncomfortable talking about his little sister, it was more that he really didn’t know what he could and couldn't say. He was kind of her only confidant here, and he didn’t wanna ruin that, “If her and I weren’t the newly adopted kids of a major and massive public figure, I would have beaten the shit out of the twelve year olds that think its funny to put gum in her hair, or smash her stuff. And even then, I know for a fact that she knows where my mach seven potato gun is, and that thing hurts like a bitch.” 

“That sucks…” Ned trailed off, and then gestured to Peter, “It kind of reminds me of Peter in elementary school.” 

Peter made a noise of embarrassment, “Ned! Dude! Shut up!” 

“He was a scrawny nerd,” MJ continued in Ned’s place, “With glasses and asthma, that was poor but went to a rich kid school. He was practically every poorly written superhero’s origin story.” 

“MJ!”

Harley cackled, “But you’re not like that now- let me guess, radioactive pig bit you?”

“Something,” Peter huffed, “Something like that.”

“Younger you sounds a bit like Abbie now,” Harley continued on though, “Asthma, glasses, scrawny, nerdy. We used to be the poorest kids in a poor town so technically that one two.” 

“Your sister is also a poorly written superhero.” 

Ned barked a laugh, “Can you even imagine?? Iron Man and his daughter, Wonder girl!” 

“Uh,” Harley protested in his sisters place, “First of all, she would be the Iron Maiden, and I would be Iron Redemption, and I could build both of our armors. Except you know, Tony would never let us go into battle.” 

“I find that hard to believe.” 

“Trust me, MJ,” Harley sighed, “I’ve tried to start a Young Avengers several billion times and its always, ‘oh you’re not enhanced Harley!’ or ‘Harley, you’re nine!’ or ‘You can’t even weld properly!’ to which I say, first of all my welding is fine i only welded the iron armor I was testing to the desk once, and I am now 15 let me do this, and he’s not enhanced either!”

Ned stared at Harley with wide eyes, “Wait what? You’ve actually asked.” 

“Uh doy.”

Peter made a face, “I can’t imagine you as a superhero.” 

“Fuck you, Parker,” Harley frowned at him, “I would make a fantastic superhero.” 

“No I mean-” Peter seemed to cut himself off, “It’s more of a super heros get hurt a lot and, I don’t know, I can’t really imagine you getting hurt.” 

Harley looked at Peter with wide eyes, but Peter wouldn’t meet his eyes. He could feel his face heating up, but wasn’t sure what to make of that. He couldn’t imagine Harley getting hurt. He couldn’t imagine Harley- he was pretty sure that Peter had hated him for awhile- getting hurt. Erorr, Error, Harley’s brain was not computing this comment.

MJ coughed, breaking the awkward silence, “Well as cute as that was, it still doesn't fix what you’re doing for Abbie’s birthday.” 

“Oh,” Harley blinked and looked at her, an idea beginning to form, “Give me a second.” 

With that he was tapping away at his phone, waiting for a second, shifting expressions and tapping away again. MJ, Ned, and Peter looked at him in anticipation. Well Ned and Peter did, while MJ went back to reading her book. Harley looked up, a grin going from ear to ear, “How would you beautiful mother fuckers like to hang out at my house three weeks from now?”   
  
  


_ Three Weeks until the Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

_ Two Weeks Until Abbie’s Birthday _

  
  


“Hey Friday?”   
  
“Yes, Mini-Boss?” 

“Mini-Boss?” Harley raised an eyebrow, “That’s a new one.” 

Friday’s voice sounded ecstatic, “Little Boss asked for new code names for the two of you.” 

“So this was Abbie’s idea?” 

“Originally she asked to be called ‘Her Royal Highness, Princess Boss Ass Bitch,’ So I figured a compromise was necessary.”

Harley rubbed his temple at this fact about his little sister, “Thank you for that. Either way, what’s everyone up to right now?” 

“Boss and Boss Lady are in the kitchen,” Friday spoke, and Harley could hear the smirk in her voice, “And ‘Her Royal Highness, Princess Boss Ass Bitch’ is in her room.” 

“Well,” Harley stretched out of bed, “What board games does Tony keep around?”

“Most notably?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Cards Against Humanity, Chess, and Monopoly?” 

Harley rubbed his temple again, “Okay what about things that are kid appropriate, not boring, and won't make me, Abbie, and Tony want to fucking kill each other?”

“First, you should know that Boss Lady could kill you before anyone else could, and second, We have Pandemic, Sorry, and Candyland.” 

“Perfect, will you tell everyone to meet me in the living room for an emergency?” 

“Right away Mini-Boss.”  
  


By the time he had gotten the three board games in question, the rest of his family were in the living room on the couches. Harley walked in the room, three board games stacked up in his arms, and Abbie grinned wide, “Yes! A game night!” 

“I was thinking,” Harley set the games on the table, “That we all could use a game night- don’t look at me like that, Pep, I see you two stressing.” 

“Okay, so maybe,” Pepper grinned at him, “I have been a little stressed.” 

“A little?” Tony barked out a laugh, “You’re literally in business mode constantly, and don’t even have time for me, your loving and amazing fiance.” 

Pepper rolled her eyes at him, “Like you haven’t been stressing too, with the accords and the presentations you have coming up.” 

“You,” Tony pulled his arm away from her to point a finger at her, “Are evil, you know that?” 

“So I’ve heard.” 

“Oh my gooood,” Abbie dragged on like a child, “Will you two stop flirting! I swear to all that is holy you’re worse than Harley and his internet boyfriend.” 

“Abbie, you little twerp,” Harley glared at his sister, “I do not have an internet boyfriend!” 

“The way you smile at your phone when y’all are texting says otherwise.” 

“What’s this about Harley having a boyfriend?” 

“An online one no less.” 

“Oh my god,” Harley put his head in his hands, “This was a horrible idea and I regret coming out of my room.” 

“Come on kid,” Tony grinned at him, showing he was messing around, “It’s not like you haven’t had dates before.” 

“Okay, me going on a few dates with a few kids from school doesn’t count as shit.” 

“Harley, language.” 

“That’s another for the swear jar, bitch.” 

“Abbie! Language.”

Harley stuck his tongue out at his sister, “See even though you’re Peppers favorite even you can’t get away with cursing.” 

“I like both of you equally,” Pepper tried to say grinning, but Harley, Abbie, and Tony all fixed her with a stair of ‘are you sure about that?’ and she laughed, “Okay maybe Abbie is my favorite, but don’t worry Harley you’re still my favorite out of you and Tony.” 

“Naturally,” Harley said as Tony let out a huffed ‘hey!’ 

“Either way,” Pepper said, raising an eyebrow with a smile on her lips, “What ever happened to all those potential suitors?” 

“I only have three friends,” Harley pointed out to her, feeling himself flush at the topic, “Those guys where just random classmates I said yes to. I didn’t even really know them, I just said yes because-” 

“Because you wanted to make Peter jealous?” Abbie teased, looking like the cat who got the canary.

Tony startled, “Peter Parker?” 

“What- no!” Harley flushed, putting his face in his hands, “Never Peter Parker!” 

“Good because,” Tony grinned, “I might make him an intern, and you can’t date my interns.” 

“I will date who ever I want!” 

“Including this Peter  _ Parker _ ?”

“Abbie,” Harley growled at her, “I will hit you.” 

“Don’t hit your sister!”

“Alright, Alright,” Harley held his hands up in surrender, “Are we playing board games or are we ragging on how much of a slut I am?” 

“Please kid,” Tony sighed, “Everyone knows if anyone is a slut in this house it's me.”

“Fair,” Harley took Sorry out of the pile, “Now are we playing or not?” 

“Yes,” Pepper grinned, “We are. And prepare to go down.” 

  
  


_ Two Weeks until the Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

_ One Week Until Abbie’s Birthday _

 

Saturday mornings in the Keener-Stark-Potts household were usually full of chaos. Abbie was a notoriously early riser, and the rest of the house either didn’t go to sleep, or didn’t wake up till one. But because Abbie was a early riser, she liked to play a fun little game called “Annoy Everyone in the House Until They Die.” Except Pepper because Pepper was a queen. But Tony and Harley? The poor night owls never had a fucking chance. 

But this particular morning though, Harley didn’t have to worry about his little sister coming to wake him up at eight in the morning. No no, he had a much bigger surprise. 

“Hey kid,” Rhodey grinned at him as he came into his room, effectively waking Harley up, “Get dressed and meet me and your sister in the dining room. Stat.” 

Harley groaned, pulling himself up. Rhodey couldn’t have waited until after the pretty dream boy that smelt like Coffee and vanilla kissed him? Rude. It was gonna be romantic. But now he was awake in the land of the living and was not happy about it.

He slipped out of his warm, soft, comfortable, nice bed and into the cold bleakness of his room. Slipping out of his Pajama shorts and top, he put on a shirt, some jeans, and his iron man hoodie. He left the room to the smell of bacon that awaited in the kitchen. By the time he got there Abbie was sitting on the bench, chattering happily to Rhodey. Tony and Pepper were leaning on each other half asleep, half paying attention to Abbie. They all looked like the picture of domestic bliss. 

“This better be good, Rhodes,” He walked into the room, making a b-line for the coffee pot, “My dream prince charming was about to kiss me, and now I’ll never get to know how it feels to get kissed.” 

“Thats stupid,” Abbie looked at him, shoveling a spoonful of cereal in her mouth, “Wasn’t your first kiss with Jesse Wilson in the back of the school parking lot in sixth grade?” 

“You shut up,” Harley pointed at her, taking a sip from the coffee, “Either way, what's happening?” 

Rhodey grinned at him, “Well I thought I’d give the new parents a day off and take you and Abbie to the compound. You know. Meet the avengers.” 

Harley spat out his coffee, “What?!” 

“But,” Rhodey continued, a teasing tone in his voice, “If you wanna go back to sleep and dream of your prince charming though, I can just take Abbie.” 

“No, no,” Harley wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, “I wanna go, I wanna go.” 

“Of course he does!” Abbie stood, ready to make fun of him, “He’s been dreaming about the Avengers since he met Tony!” 

“Abbie, I won’t hesitate to hit you.” 

“No hitting your sister,” Pepper called, sleepy and still leaning against the equally sleepy Tony.

“Yeah, yeah, I know the drill, don’t hit my sister, yatta yatta,” Harley waved her off and turned to Rhodey, “So when do we get to meet the avengers?”

“Now if you’re ready.”

Harley grinned, “Hell yeah we’re ready!” 

 

It was a two hour drive to get to the avengers compound, and about a half an hour in order to establish the fact that, yes they were cleared for the compound, and yes they were indeed Tony Stark’s children. And by the time they were into the compound Abbie was nervously chattering, “And I really wanna meet Captain America, he seems really cool.”

“Cool,” Harley snorted, “Doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

“Keep walking,” Rhodey moved them along, “Seriously I’m taking you to the training room first.” 

Abbie stopped for a second, “The training room?! Are we gonna be able to see the Avengers training?!” 

“Yep,” Rhodey smiled at the nine year old, “That’s exactly what's going to happen.” 

He paused at a door, and grinned at the two kids, “You two wanna see something cool?” 

Abbie nodded excitedly, and Harley grinned, as Rhodey opened the door. 

Scarlet Witch was inside, levitating a huge rock, and suddenly she launched it at Captain America who threw the shield and dodged. The shield bounced towards The Scarlet Witch, who quickly did more of her red wispy magic in order to thrust the shield back, which Captain America caught with little resistance. 

Rhodey clapped, “Impressive.”

Training seemed to halt, Scarlet Witch’s magic halting and Captain America stopping. They stared at Rhodey before the good captain broke into a smile, “Rhodey, good to see you too.” 

“Always a pleasure Cap,” He grinned and then moved aside a little, allowing Abbie and Harley to be shown, “This is Abbie and Harley Keener.” 

“Stark’s kids?” Captain America seemed surprised. 

Harley immediately didn’t like that. ‘Starks kids.’ Him and Tony were friends, why didn’t he just call him Tony? Steve Rogers was giving him vibes. Bad vibes. On edge vibes. Abbie on the other hand shook her head inexitment, “Yeah!” 

“Um,” He looked slightly uncomfortable but smiled anyway, “That's pretty cool.”

“Thank you!” Abbie chippered and then she turned her attention to Wanda, who waved hesitantly, “Hi!” 

Harley almost wanted to tell Abbie to step back when she started walking, but he knew for a fact that neither of the two would do anything. They were both good people. Well he didn’t know how he felt about Captain America. He set off vibes. Bad vibes. 

Abbie on the other hand stopped in front of Wanda with wide eyes, and stuck out her hand, “I’m Abbie Macy Keener.” 

“My Name is Wanda Maximoff,” She hesitantly shook Abbie’s tiny hand, “It is nice to meet you Miss Keener.” 

Abbie giggled, and Harley could feel annoyance creep up his neck. Was his little sister really getting a crush on Wanda Maximoff? He found his answer in the way Abbie shly asked, “Can you show me that?” 

“Show you what?”

Abbie made a motion with her hands, “The red magic thing.” 

“Except,” Abbie looked back at Harley, “Magic doesn’t exist right Harley?” 

“That is completely correct, sis,” Harley nodded, sensing Abbie’s unasked question of ‘is this okay?’

He wouldn’t say Abbie was dependent on him. But she had been young when their dad had dipped on them, and she had always looked to Harley for anything that made her nervous and scared. When she was really young, and had finally grown to realize that their dad had just… left, she was heartbroken. And now, since their mom had died, she needed him more than ever. Abbie gave him a bright smile and began to talk Wanda’s ear off. 

“So is Stark your biological dad?” 

Harley tore his eyes to meet Steve Rogers, “Who Tony? God no, I met him during the Mandarin incident.” 

“Mandarin Incident?” 

“You know,” Harley was starting to get uncomfortable. He was always under the impression that Tony’s team knew about all of the incidents he’d been through, “This ass hat kind of was testing on human subjects and blaming it on terrorists. Tony’s mansion got blown up, and he ended up in Rose Hill, where we met. So yeah.” 

“What-” The older man looked concerned, “What the hell did Stark do?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Why would terrorists go after Stark unless he did something?” 

Harley furrowed his brow, “Technically he provoked them but only after-”

“Stark provoked Terrorists?” Rogers sounded like he was blaming Tony, and Harley realized a bit of his mistake. 

“No, what happened was-” 

“And you two kids are allowed to live with him?” 

“Okay,” Harley held his hands out, “First of all, Tony did that because one of his friends was placed in a coma because of them. Second of all, I’ve made several variations of a potato gun and about three of them are probably lethal- not that I've tested it against anything but armor- but still. Third of all, Tony and Pepper were asked by my fucking dying mother to take care of us, you asshole, and they said yes because we all knew that we didn’t have any other viable options.” 

Rogers looked startled, “What about your dad.” 

“My dad,” Harley’s voice raised, and he quickly lowered it to a voice that he knew Abbie couldn’t hear, “Left us, because two children where to much when he already hated the first. Tony has always been much more of a dad to me than that fucker has.” 

“Langu-” 

“Hey Rhodey?” Harley called loudly, cutting the good captain off, “Where did you say Vis was? I really wanna meet him.”

And with at that, he left Rogers to stand there awkwardly as Abbie dragged Wanda with them to talk to The Vision. 

 

_ One Week until the Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

_ Abbie’s Birthday _

  
  


To say that Abbie was excited to meet Harley’s friends was a bit of an understatement. She was bouncing around with excitement- mainly because Harley had been hyping them up quite a bit. Harley wouldn’t say he talked about his friends excessively, but it also wasn’t like he never mentioned them to his sister. She was especially excited to meet Peter Parker, because ever since game night she hadn’t let him get a wink of ‘he’s just a friend’ and a lot more conspiracy that Peter Parker was his Peter, which was ridiculous to say the least. 

She was also excited because she had asked if Wanda Maximoff could come to the party, and Wanda has said yes. Harley always wanted to laugh when Wanda was around his sister- which she kept being dragged to talk to her- because Wanda clearly didn’t know what to do about this child who adored her, but she still absolutely loved Abbie. Harley didn’t know how to feel about Wanda- the way she acted around Tony, like she was guilty of something and the both of them knew it- but if Abbie liked her, then Harley approved of her. 

Tony had actually asked all of the Avengers to come- mainly because Abbie wanted to meet all of them, not just the three she already knew. She was especially excited to meet Clint Barton because, from what Harley could understand, Barton was bringing his family including his kids, a fourteen year old boy, a girl that had just turned ten, and a baby boy. Abbie was kind of hoping that the girl would like her, since they were both ten. 

She had been dancing on air the entire day, but thankfully staying away from the kitchen so that Pepper and Harley were able to actually make the cake that she liked. A strawberry buttercream cake, their mom’s recipe. Not for the first time, Harley was glad that her birthday was on a saturday, meaning that they actually had enough time to make the cake. It had to be perfect. Harley needed it to be perfect. 

He had told his friends to show up about an hour early, but both Ned and MJ had opted to come when the party was actually getting started. Something about being busy- though Harley had a bet with himself that they just wanted to test their theory of Harley and Peter being madly in love. It worked out though, because Tony wanted to talk to Peter about a possible internship. Bleh. 

He put the cake in the oven and turned to Pepper, “Hey do you wanna start on the icing?” 

“You’ve got it, honey,” Pepper smiled, and started to gather all the stuff, “After all you pretty much made the cake yourself.” 

“Watch it Pep,” Harley chuckled, “I’m still not aloud to use the oven.” 

“I mean, you did almost blow up the house.” 

“Now you hush,” Harley pouted, folding his arms across his chest, before grinning and walking away, “I’m gonna go shower for a second, will you take the cake out of the oven.”   
  


He stepped into the shower and started to wash the flour, sugar, and any other remaining food items on him. The steam and the heat was always relaxing. He hated the actual water of the shower though. It reminded him of the water tower falling. He never really got over the feeling of being thrust forward in water struggling to keep his head above the water, before giving up and going down. Ever since then he kind of avoided waters. Except showers, because showers felt nice. At least the heat of the shower did. 

He started thinking about everything that had happened in the year. One of the last days of eighth grade he came home to a dying mother. She died in Summer. He Moved in with Tony in August. He started high School in September. Wash, rinse, repeat. 

It hit him finally though, that his mom hadn’t lived to see Abbie turned ten. And she hadn’t lived to see Harley turn sixteen. She wouldn’t see Abbie walk down the aisle, and she wouldn’t see Harley graduate from MIT. She wouldn’t get to experience any of that. 

He was glad for the water in the shower for once. It hid his tears.   
  


By the time he was out of the shower the entire house smelled like his mom’s strawberry cake. He didn’t cry. But he did almost drop his towel as he left the bathroom, “Jesus Parker! Warn a guy!” 

“Um,” Peter’s face was bright red and he wouldn’t make eye contact, “I tried.”

Harley checked his phone, seeing a billion texts from Peter, “So you did.” 

“Can you like,” Harley motioned to the door, “leave so I can change?” 

Peter squeaked, “Yep.” 

The second he was out the door, Harley held his face in his hands and groaned. At least Peter hadn’t seen the goods. Not ass wise, and not dick wise. A brief scene passed in his head, and he pushed it away with force. No time for dirty thoughts. 

Or maybe, he grinned to himself, it was perfect timing. 

He slipped into his black skin tight skinny jeans, and pulled over a hoodie. Sexy but same style as he usually went. He opened the door and turned back around heading in his room, “So what's been up?”

“Um- uh,” Peter gulped audibly, “Nothing much.” 

Harley glanced over his shoulder, bending down to grab some clothes on the floor. The resulting blush on Peter’s face was satisfying, and Harley broke the silence by snorting, “Any reason you’re a tomato?"

“No.” 

“You sure?” Harley stepped closer raising an eyebrow, “No reason at all?” 

“Yep.” Peter squeaked again. 

Harley grinned, moving past Peter to the door, “Then come on, Tony wants to talk to you.” 

Peter went quiet for a second before following Harley, “Tony?” 

“Stark,” Harley responded to the unasked question. 

“That's what I thought you meant.”    


Harley glanced at him, but stopped in front of the door to the lab, “Well I’m glad you have half a brain then Parker.” 

Abbie was inside of the lab on the couch, and Tony was standing near a table where Dum-E was stationed. Both of them looked towards the two as they entered, and Harley grinned, “Hey Tony, Abbie, this is Peter B. Parker.” 

“I’m familiar with him,” Tony grinned and took off his gloves, sticking out a hand, “I’ve been watching your work for a bit now.” 

“Uh, um, Me?” Peter stuttered out, taking Tony’s hand, “My work?” 

“Yeah,” Tony grinned, “Has Harley not told you that I’ve been thinking of making you an intern here at Stark Industries?” 

Peter seemed to have a mini fangirl moment, but cleared his throat long enough to glare at Harley, “No! He did not!” 

“To be fair, Parker,” Harley shrugged, plopping himself right next to Abbie, who grinned at him in a demonish way, “I didn’t think it was that important.”

“Not- not in- Not Important!”

Abbie laughed, “I see why you like this one Harley.”

“I do not like Parker.” 

“Really,” Abbie tilted her head in a way that anyone who didn’t know her would think was innocent, “I thought he was your best friend.” 

“No, no,” Peter grinned at her, “That’s MJ. Harley hates me.” 

“Does he now?” Tony raised an eyebrow at Harley. In a way that Harley knew meant ‘ is that why you chose to wear jeans five times too small?’ but he prefered to ignore that.

“Yeah,” Abbie grinned at her brother, “Does he?” 

Peter smiled at the freshly turned ten year old, and Abbie’s smile dropped and her eyes grew wide as he said, “Your brother sicked three llamas on me, but even then, I doubt he hates me.” 

Abbie sat there with wide eyes and Harley groaned, “Abigail, do not.” 

“Do not what?” She squealed, “Don’t reveal how much effort you put in your Pranks?” 

“Why yes, Harley, do tell how much effort you put into your pranks?” Peter grinned and Abbie giggled. 

And that seemed to be the moment that Abbie had decided that Peter was the best person on the earth. Harley, Who? It was like he was dust in the eyes of his sister, who was chatting away at the ear of his friend, who for his part, was listening intensely. It was kind of.. domestic.   
  


By the time the rest of his friends showed up, Abbie was playing with Lila Barton and hanging around Wanda Maximoff with stars in her eyes. Ned and MJ were talking to a few of the avengers- along with a very grumpy Cooper Barton, who was probably forced to come. Peter was hanging around the doorway, watching Abbie play with Lila. 

“Hey,” Harley leaned against the wall, “Thank you for being so cool about her.”

Peter looked at him, “What do you mean?” 

“She can be…” Harley tried to find the words, “A bit much. Loud, talkative, and invasive.” 

“She’s an angel.” 

“You’re right,” Harley chuckled, before going quiet again, “Ned and MJ mentioned that you used to be like her.” 

“What do you mean?” 

Harley gestured to his sister, with her thick rimmed glasses and messy hair. She was huffing a bit as she danced with Lila, and tried to get Wanda to dance with her. Harley smiled at the scene, “Bullied, for starters.” 

“Oh,” Peter went quiet, “Yeah, I was.” 

“Did it get better?” 

“Not really,” Peter looked up, “I had friends, but not really. My saving grace was my uncle Ben, but… he couldn’t really help.” 

“Uncle Ben?” 

Peter glanced around, “He died a while ago. Robbery gone wrong.” 

“Oh.” 

“But,” Peter continued, “Him and Aunt May were really the only support system I had before I met Ned and MJ, but I don’t think Abbie will have that problem.” 

“Really?” 

Peter nodded, “Look at her. Everyone in the room adores her, and everyone can tell how much you care. She had so much more support than I did. I think she’ll be okay.” 

Harley’s heart burned as he looked at Peter, who was smiling at Abbie- who noticed and bolted over. She pulled him away, insisting that he come dance with them. 

Harley ignored the way his heart burned.   
  
  


IronMansMechanic: anyway 

IronMansMechanic: ive figured out my feelings 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: About?

IronMansMechanic: Peter Fucking Parker. 

IronMansMechanic:  i hate him

IronMansMechanic: hes so annoying and cute and its not fair 

IronMansMechanic: like i know that he doesnt like me all that much

IronMansMechanic: well i actually dont know that

IronMansMechanic: but heres the thing   
  
IronMansMechanic: we were just hanging in the living room 

IronMansMechanic: bc i invited them to come hang out for my sisters birthday 

IronMansMechanic: cause shes getting bullied and doesnt really have any friends and i know she likes all the stuff that we talk abt 

IronMansMechanic: and hes so good with her

IronMansMechanic: hes so nice 

IronMansMechanic: and perfect   
  
IronMansMechanic: and my sister absolutely loves him 

IronMansMechanic: i hat ehim 

IronMansMechanic: i hate Peter Fucking Parker

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Peter Parker?

IronMansMechanic: ye ye 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: Is he the guy you’ve been texting about recently?

IronMansMechanic: uh doy 

IronMansMechanic: keep up dude

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: I’ve got to go. 

IronMan-DidNothingWrong: We’ll continue this later, yeah?

IronMansMechanic: ye ye 

  
  
  


_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

 

Harley stared at the screen behind the scenes of the presentation that Tony was giving with wide eyes. He pulled Abbie closer, but didn’t look away. Abbie was shaking, “Harley whats happening?” 

“I don’t know, Abbie,” Harley muttered, “It's going to be okay. Everyone in there is going to be okay.” 

Then the explosion happened, in a flash of orange, and a familiar red wisp. Harley moved his hands in front of Abbie’s eyes. His own eyes were glued onto the screen. ‘Avengers Cause Chaos In Lagos- unknown how many are dead- Iron Man, War Machine, Thor, and Hulk not on Scene.’  The entire scene was chaos. The building was on fire, half of it blown up. The pedestrians on the street were scrambling in a panic. 

Tony ended his presentation, rushing to his kids, “Come on, we should go.” 

“Tony,” Harley muttered, as his guardian picked up Abbie who was still shaking, and held onto his wrist, “What's going to happen to them?” 

“That's not your place to worry about, kiddo,” His voice was tight. 

Harley followed Tony down a few hallways, his pace fast. They were all going to be in trouble. All of the Avengers. None of them were going to get out of this unscathed. But the accords- he tried to think, had they been passed? He realized that they hadn’t been, but were going to be passed soon. The timing of this was bad. All of this was bad. Wanda being involved made it worse somehow. 

They came to a hallway where a woman was waiting for the elevator. They stepped next to her. 

She cleared her throat slightly, “That was nice, what you just did for all of those MIT students.” 

She either didn’t notice or didn’t care that Tony was taking care of two children. One of whom was shaking in his arms, and the other was looking just as distraught as his brain raced through what was going to happen. He nodded, “Yeah. They deserve it.” 

“They do,” She looked him in the eye, “You know. When you got the money. Break as many eggs as you like.” 

Something in her tone made Harley reach for his little sister, and for his little sister to reach for Harley. Tony let her go, if only so that he could stand in front of the two of them. 

She reached into her purse and Tony instinctively stuck an arm out in front of the two children. She brought out a photo, “I guess he was one of those eggs.” 

She pushed the photo onto his chest, “You know, my son,  was a good man. Graduated honors in high school and got a full ride to MIT. But, before he went to college, he wanted to do something. So he went to Sokovia to help with the relief efforts.” 

Harley let out a soft gasp, and held Abbie a little bit tighter. The woman payed the two of them no mind as she continued, “And now he's dead. Maybe not by your hands, but definitely at your fault.” 

Harley wanted to protest, but Tony’s arm was still out in front of them, like he wasn’t sure if they would need protection or not.  He stayed quiet. 

“Tell me, Stark,” She stepped closer to him,  "Do you think you fight for us? You just fight for yourself. Who's going to avenge my son, Stark? He's dead. And I blame you. Charlie Spencer is dead. And I blame you.”

She turned on her heal, leaving the photograph of her son in the hand that Tony wasn’t using to shield his kids. She hesitated for a second before looking over her shoulder, “Do you love your kids, Stark?"

“Of course.” 

“What would you have done if it had been one of them?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you to emrysczerny on tumblr for helping to beta this fic!
> 
> Tell me what you think of Peter finally knowing, and how you feel about the freshly ten year old Abbie!
> 
> ALSO IM SO SORRT FOR NOT POSTING SOONER IVE BEEN THE BUSY


	5. Sleep With A Baseball Bat by Cosmic Johnny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Events Of Civil War. Fuuuuun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> K so. Trigger warning bc Harley gets hurt in this one, and so does literally everyone else. The entire chapter is civil war so be careful okay? 
> 
> So. HE MEETS SPIDERMAN. 
> 
> FJALBHDALL THIS CHAP WAS HARD TO WRITE FOR SOME REASON.

_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ A week Before Siberia _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

 

**May The Force**

i’m gonna be honest here

i’m reading up on the accords

 

**Don’t Talk to Me**

I’m surprised you know how to read

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

ditto lol 

 

**Be With You**

Don’t be mean to Ned.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

yall have mathcing nicknames

thats gay

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

They’re kind of gay

 

**Be With You**

I’m more of a bi kind of guy.

 

**May The Force**

I’m straight 

 

**Don’t Talk To Me**

Im not 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

im not 

 

**Be With You**

I’m not. 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

also why did peter get the lame ass part of that quote 

 

**Be With you**

Because Ned is lame. 

 

**May the Force**

Yeah sure whatever blame me I guess 

 

**Do Not Talk To Me**

K we will 

 

**May the Force**

Die 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Man I wish 

 

**Be With you**

Harley… no… 

 

**May The Force**

Either way. 

The accords. 

I’m reading about them and they seem like a good thing 

 

**Do Not Talk To Me**

Wow guys

Ned has just stated the most obvious thing on the earth 

Someone contact the police 

He’s clearly been kidnapped

 

**May The Force**

Ha ha h a. 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

either way 

are you actually just noticing this

 

**May The Force**

I hadn’t been paying attention! 

 

**Be With You**

Dude, I knew. 

And I am really not good with reading the News.

 

**Do Not Talk To Me**

We know we know 

The daily bugel is awful 

 

**Be With You**

Its true! Stfu!

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

arent they the newspaper that doesnt like that spiderman

 

**Be With You**

Spider-Man*

And Yeah.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

tony hates them bc he wants spiderman to join the avengers

 

**May The Force**

dud e thats so cool bc Spider-Man is the Queens super hero omg 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

ye 

**Be With You**

How would Mr. Stark even get in touch with Spider-Man? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

its tony

he could probably get in touch with the dead if he tried

 

**Do Not Talk To Me**

Has he tried  
  


 

Abbie screamed loud and sharp. It rang through the floor, and Harley immediately dropped his phone, rushing to get to his sister. He slammed into the living room to see Abbie crying in front of the TV, her eyes locked onto the screen in fear. There was a zoom in of the UN building that the Sokovian Accords were being signed in. The entire scene was gruesome, and it looked like the news anchors reporting on the scene were in shock. 

Harley reached for Abbie, “Abbie are you okay?” 

“What,” Abbie was shaking, “What just happened?” 

“Abbie, we’re in New York,” Harley stepped in front of her, getting down to eye level with her, to block her view of the violent picture on the screen, “We’re in Stark tower. We’re okay, honey, we’re okay.”

“What about the people,” Her voice was caught in her throat, but she pushed through looking at Harley with wide eyes, “What about the people in the bombing? Are they okay?” 

Harley hesitated, before answering, “Some of them are, some of them might not be. It’s going to be okay, either way.”

“Harley,” Abbie was shaking as she looked at her brother, “Do you think something bad is coming?” 

“No, Abbie,” He shushed her, pulling her into a hug, “I don’t think anything bad is going to happen.” 

On the screen behind them, a picture of James Buchanan Barnes appeared. Harley got the feeling that whatever was about to happen would be bad. They were reaching the boiling point. But the question, Harley realized as he glanced at the screen, was who the water was gonna hit.  
  
  
  


_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Four Days Before Siberia _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

 

The news of the collapsed tunnel in Vienna shook the world to the core. The fact that it was done by Two Avengers and a mind controlled Assassin- who had just bombed the UN- was even worse. Twelve People were dead. Many more were hurt. Two children had died, and about ten were hurt. Five children were in the ICU, and weren’t expected to make a full recovery, after the car they had been carpooling in had gotten flipped by Captain America. About sixty more adults and teens were in the ICU as a result of the injuries they sustained as pedestrians. All of this, was only counting civilians, not the officers who were on scene. Those counts of injury and death were higher. 

One girl had gripped the heart of the world. Ten year old Ngozi Uman. She died the hour she was delivered to the hospital. Ngozi had pushed a man out of the way of a car. She had gotten hit instead. She was just a kid. A child. And she was gone because of Steve Roger and his friends. She was Abbie’s age. 

That’s what got Harley the most. This little girl who had been killed, had just turned ten. Just like his baby sister. Harley didn’t know how to feel about. About any of it. Except he did. 

He and Pepper had started talking about it ages before Lagos happened, but that was the day that it had gotten actually kicked off. The idea of setting up some sort of fund and relief program for those who needed it. Free access, and all funded by Tony Stark, a billionare that made around 8, 961,187 dollars an hour. If you needed it, it was open to you. That was the plan. He and Pepper had talked about opening it in celebration of the accords. 

Harley had a new plan now. 

He was however, starting to feel shaky about this, as Pepper went onto the stage that was set up in Stark Tower for the press to see. Pepper however, didn’t even flinch at the flashing lights of camera’s and the questions that were already being thrown at her. Mainly demanding to know what this was about. Pepper raised a hand, silencing the crowd of blood thirsty reporters, “My first order of business, is to offer my condolences to the victims of the Tunnel collapse.” 

She paused, waiting for a heart beat before continuing, “There are several things I would like to address with the current state of affairs that Tony Stark- an active consultant for the Avengers- also holds. For starters, the Avenger known as Sam Wilson had used Stark Technology designed by Tony to help save the world. We at Stark industries would like to state, that had we known that the technology would be used this way, the device in question would have been destroyed. Neither Tony or Stark Industries approve of the use of this in this manor. Should Mr. Wilson attempt to use the falcon wings again, it will be considered stealing as they are Stark Industries property and were merily loaned to Mr. Wilson.” 

“Now,” She paused, letting people take in the information before jumping right on track, “On behalf of Tony Stark himself, I would like to promise that the Maria Stark Foundation will cover  any damages done by in by Mr. Wilson. We are also willing to cover any damages done by Captain America and James Barnes.” 

The uproar was immediate, all of them throwing questions about why the Maria Stark fondations money wouldn't be going to the Victims. Pepper calmly put her hand up, silencing again, “Having said my piece, please stay quiet as Harley Stark comes up here, and says his.” 

Harley almost wanted to throw up, but he took the stand quietly, “Um, Hi. I’m Harley Stark- as Pepper, er- Miss Potts has said. About four months ago, me and my younger sister Abbie, were adopted by Tony Stark. In the adoption, I became aware that I have a rather er- large, sum of money just sitting around.” 

“Today though,” He thought about his sister, and the way she shook when she saw on the news that it was Captain America that did those things, “ Today though, I would like to put that money to something. Tony approved it long before, when the idea was barley an idea. A foundation, dedicated to the betterment of humanity as a whole. Something anyone can access. Be it a family who is suffering from the collapse of a tunnel at the hands of two people they trusted, or a single mother struggling to feed her two children without picking up a third job.” 

Harley paused, “This fondation will be funded by Tony Stark himself, and it will be there for as long as it needs to be. Miss Potts and I have talked about this a lot, and we’ve both decided that this world needs something like this. A part of the fondation will be a few dozen headquarters all throughout the world, dedicated to humanitarian work. These headquarters will also help people who go there to locate and find jobs, as well as running soup kitchens, and daycares. All of this, so that the people who need it, can have it.” 

“After a lot of debate,” Harley shifted his weight, trying not to look nervous, “We have asked persmission to name the fondation, the Ngozi Fondation. We asked Yuwa and Idara Uman, and they said yes, provided that the money that gets donated to the fondation go to making sure that nothing like the situation Ngozi died in happens again. And we promised to do that. As of right now, all of the Ngozi fondations efforts will be placed in aiding all of the families affected by this horrible event."

He glanced at Pepper, who nodded at him with a prod smile on her face, and he wrapped it up, “My mom once told Abbie and I, that if you can’t help, try, and if you can, do it. I think that this is something that we need to live by, and understand. Me and Abbie used to not be able to help, but even then, we would try to. Now I have the money to be able to help, and I will always be there to help.” 

With a charming smile, Harley stepped down, and let Pepper regain control of the audience for questions. 

By the end of the day, Harley had been dubbed an absolute saint by the media, and had a few twitter Stan accounts made of him. He ignored them. 

He felt off. Kind of really off and dragging and bad. He loved the fact that he was doing a good thing for the world. He hated the fact that his Peter wasn’t texting him. They hadn’t been talking much since around Abbie’s birthday. It made him feel gross and icky, like he’d done something wrong and could never ever make up for it. It wasn’t a good feeling, but he couldn’t really do anything. His Peter was just busy probably. He had mentioned getting an internship somewhere soon. Which was no surprise. 

He was obviously just busy. Harley didn’t have to worry about losing a friend. He was just busy. He had to have been. 

He grabbed his phone, biting his lip. 

 

IronMansMechanic: Peter? 

IronMansMechanic: Are you around? 

IronMansMechnaic: Text me when you can.   
  


Harley got a sinking feeling in his gut. He probably wouldn’t. Peter probably realized how awful he was. Harley felt a pressure rise in his throat. He was saved by a notification, showing him the notification from Peter Parker. Not the Peter he wanted to talk to but better than no one to talk to.   
  


**Be With You**

Hey.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Heya. 

  
  


**Be With You**

What’s up my dude? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

I’m just… worried about an internet friend. 

 

**Be With You**

Oh 

Are they okay? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

I don’t know. 

He’s stopped talking to me. 

It kind of hurts. 

 

**Be With You**

Harley…. 

maybe he has a good reason? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Like what? 

 

**Be With You**

What if they know something, 

And really wanna talk to you, 

But are afraid of how you’ll react? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Not possible 

My Peter knows everything about me. He probably knows how I’d react to anything. 

 

**Be With You**

What if he was like in love with you or something? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Doubtful 

 

**Be With You**

Why do you say that? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Common, Parker, you of all people know I’m fucking awful. 

 

**Be With You**

What? 

You’re not awful! 

Look at what you did with setting up the Ngozi Fondation! That’s a pretty kind thing to do. 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Peter, come on, you know what I meant 

Anyone would set up the Ngozi foundation if given the chance. 

Don’t go easy on me just because I’m sad. 

 

**Be With You**

Harley, I am not going easy on you just because you’re sad. 

You’re a good person. I know because I’ve seen it. The way you are with Abbie, the way you care about people. The way you know the details of things just by looking at it. You wanna help people, Harley.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Even then though, my Peter could never be in love with me. 

He’s six times as good as anyone I know 

 

**Be With You**

How well do you know him? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Pretty damn well. 

 

**Be With You**

And it's safe to say that he knows you pretty well? 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Better than you, obviously. 

 

**Be With You**

Ha ha, funny. 

But seriously. If you two know each other that well, he’s probably dealing with something he can’t tell you about. 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

He can tell me anything.

 

**Be with You**

You really care about him, huh?

  
  


**The ultimate Mechanic**

If I ever had a soulmate, its him.

 

**Be With You**

Then he’ll come back when he’s ready. 

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

How do you know?

 

**Be With You**

Trust me. 

I just do.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Okay 

Thank you, Peter.  
  
  


_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Three Days Before Siberia _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident _

 

“I want to go see Wanda.” 

Pepper stared at Abbie with wide eyes. They were all sitting at the dinner table, eating chinese takeout. Tony was away, trying to get Rogers to sign the accords, so it was a small tonight. Take out, then they’d do their homework, and Pepper would go to Pepper things. At least that's what they were all planning to do until Abbie dropped the statement. 

Pepper furrowed her brow, “Abbie I don’t think that's a good idea.” 

“Why not?” Abbie crossed her arms, and Harley looked back and forth between the two girls. Talk about and unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. 

“For starters,” Pepper shifted, looking at Harley to back her up. Harley offered no such form of backup, so she continued alone, “She’s on lock down in the compound.”

“Then we can go to the compound.” 

“Abbie,” Pepper’s voice was kind but stern, “No. We won’t go to the compound. It's a little dangerous being around Wanda right now.” 

Abbie’s face turned red, “She is not dangerous!” 

“Abbie,” Pepper clearly had never dealt with a child that wanted something, “She’s not dangerous onn purpose but-” 

“She’s not dangerous at all!” Abbie snapped, her face still red, “You just don’t like her!”

Pepper was starting to get annoyed, trying to keep her calm, “What ever I may feel about Wanda doesn’t mean anything. She’s not stable.” 

“You’re wrong!” Abbie was screeching at this point, and Harley could sense the impending meltdown.   
  
“Do not scream at me!” 

Abbie’s entire face scrunched up, and Harley knew what was coming and spoke up, “Abbie-” 

“Screw you,” She screamed, pointing her finger at Pepper, “Screw you so much!” 

“Abigail Eliza Keener!” 

“Abbie!” 

Abbie, however, stormed off. Pepper looked at Harley with a frown, “Is she always like this when she doesn’t get her way?” 

“No,” Harley rubbed his temple, “Just when people she finds cool are involved.” 

Pepper wiped her mouth, “Should I go talk to her?” 

“Nah,” Harley shoveled another fork full of food in his mouth, “She needs a moment to herself.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Pepper, I’ve been in charge of her my entire life,” Harley looked at her, “I know her better than anyone on this earth. Just give her a few hours, and then I’ll talk to her and explain why going to see Wanda is a bad idea. Okay?” 

“Alright,” Pepper smiled at him, “Thank you for knowing what to do in this situation.” 

“No problem. Abbie may like Wanda a lot, but it doesn’t change the fact that we can’t go to the compound.”

 

“Okay get up,” Harley turned the light on in his sisters room, “Stop sulking.” 

Abbie sat up, “What..?” 

“Go get dressed,” Harley’s voice was quiet, “I’m taking us to the compound.” 

“Harley, you can’t drive!” 

“Not legally, but,” Harley fixed her with a stair, “We both know that I’ve been able to drive a car since I was ten.” 

“You’re right,” Abbie pulled herself out of bed, pulling on a coat, “Thank you.” 

Harley paused, biting his lip, “I’m doing this because I don’t want to see you sad, Abbie. But make no mistake. If we get in trouble, I won’t take the fall for you, okay?” 

“Alright.” 

“And besides,” Harley offered his hand to his little sister, “We’re not taking the car. Friday is jetting us there.” 

“Um,” Abbie squeaked, grabbing his hand and letting herself be guided towards the platform on the roof, “Is this a good idea?” 

“Probably not.” 

“Is it a good idea to trust Friday?”    


“Little boss,” Friday’s voice took on a slightly offended tone, “The fact you need to ask is hurtful.” 

Abbie giggled, smiling at the ceiling, “Thank you Friday.”

 

The actual ride to the Avengers Compound was fairly smooth and easy, and it took around thirty minutes for the actual ride. The whole time, Abbie was uncharacteristically quiet, and Harley was a little worried. Abbie was a chatterbox at heart, so it was normally a bad sign when she was quiet for a little more than a few moments. 

The last time she had gone quiet for more than a few minutes, she had gone quiet for a few weeks. She was four years old, and Harley had yelled at her about how their dad was never coming back. Harley didn’t think that this was anywhere near that serious, but it still worried him more than he would like to admit. She couldn’t normally handle not talking for more than five minutes without making small comments, and here she was having been quiet since they had gotten on the plane. 

As it landed she turned to her brother, “I think I’m gonna apologize for telling Pepper ‘screw you.’” 

“I think that's a good idea,” Harley felt proud that his sister was realizing things that she might need to do regarding their new family, “She’s been real good to us Abbie.”

“I know,” Abbie’s voice was soft, “I just think she’s rude to Wanda.” 

Harley considered this for a moment. He knew why Pepper didn’t like Wanda. The fact that she had a hand in the creation of Ultron by fucking with Tony’s head made him jumpy, but he knew that she would never touch a hair on Abbie’s head. No one would, not if he could help it. He spoke just as softly as he replied, “I think she might have a right to be. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t be friends with Wanda, right?” 

“Right,” Abbie looked down at her shoes, “Can we go to the compound now?” 

“Of course, honey,” Harley grinned and stepped out of the plane, helping her out.   
  


“Hey Viz,” He waved upon entering the room, “Hey Wanda.” 

“Wanda!” Abbie called happily, racing towards her favorite avenger. 

Wanda smiled happily, “Miss Abbie! How are you?” 

“Hungry,” Harley said in Abbie’s place, glancing at the kitchen stove, “Little miss priss over there didn’t finish her dinner.” 

“Well it’s a good thing we have made some food then,” Vision spoke smiling, gesturing for them to sit down at the dinner table. 

Abbie blushed, and looked at her shoes again, “I am kind of hungry.” 

“Kind of?” Harley snorted, “Your stomach was rumbling the entire way here.” 

“Oh?” Wanda asked, smiling at the kids, “Well then we have just the food for you.” 

She ushered Harley and Abbie to the table, with a wide grin on her face, “It's a food that reminds me of home- me and my twin brother made it a lot in our youth- and its fantastic! Paprikash has a tendency to warm the soul, I promise.” 

Abbie grinned and began talking to Wanda in a rapid fire exchange. Harley observed the surrounding area. 

He had been here when he had come to the compound the first time. But so much had changed in the few weeks since he had first come here. Abbie was trying her best to pretend that none of it had happened, but nothing changed the fact that it had all happened. And from what Harley could tell, it wasn’t exactly peaches and cream from anyone’s perspective. Wanda looked tired, Tony looked exhausted, and Harley had a bad feeling. 

Everything that was happening was just adding fire to an already big flame. He was still on the lookout for who was going to get burned, to try to stop it before it reached Abbie or him. 

“Harley?” Wanda asked him, her voice loud and interrupting his thoughts, “Would you also like some paprikash?” 

He nodded, his eyes trained on her hands.

By the time that the four of them were done, all four of them were talking comfortably about a multitude of things. Abbie was cackling loudly, and was generally just having a time of her life. Wanda was talking to her enthusiastically, and even Vision had a small smile on his mouth. The whole scene was one of domestic bliss.

Harley couldn’t shake the feeling in his stomach. Something wasn’t right. Something really wasn’t right. No matter what he did he couldn’t get the feeling out of him. He almost wanted to ask Abbie if they could leave, but he had snuck them out so that his sister could be happy. He wasn’t about to take that away from her. So instead, he silently helped with the dishes.

 

He realized that he should have asked Abbie to leave, when Clint Barton showed up out of the blue. 

“Hey guys,” his voice was tense. Harley stopped away from the sink, and started backing up towards Abbie, “Wanda, suit up.” 

“What?” Wanda looked surprised, “Clint what’s going on?” 

“Yeah, Mr. Barton,” Abbie spoke up curiously, and Harley almost wanted to tell her to stay quiet, “What’s going on? And is Lila around? I wanna play with her again!” 

Thankfully, Clint didn’t even glance at Abbie, “Wanda, we have to go. Cap needs us.” 

“Excuse me, Mr. Barton,” Visions voice was strong, “But Wanda is under strict orders to stay in the Compound.”

Abbie looked confused, “Why? And Why does Captain America need help?” 

“Abigail,” Harley grabbed her arm, “Stay quiet okay? We need to start getting ready to leave.” 

“Harley, why-“ 

“Steve needs us?” 

Clint nodded, “He’s in some trouble. He really needs us.” 

“Okay,” Wanda made a move to the door, “I’ll go suit up.” 

“No,” Vision lightly grabbed Wanda’s arm, his eyes pleading, “Wanda you can’t-“ 

An arrow met Visions for head, and Abbie let out a startled scream. Harley grabbed her, pulling her under the table, so she would avoid any cross fire as Vision stood up, his entire body shaking and he pulled the arrow from his forehead.

He threw it back at Clint, “Mr. Barton, please, stop this there are children-“ 

Clint unleashed a barrage of more arrows, Vision phased until he wasn’t a solid, and they struck the wall behind the kitchen Table. Abbie was crying, her eyes wide with fear. Wanda made a turn to go, and that’s when Abbie rushed out from under the table. 

“Wanda, Wanda,” Her voice was shaky, and Harley was rushing after her, “You can’t leave.” 

Wanda looked away from her, taking her hand away from Abbie, “I’m sorry Miss Abbie.” 

Harley tried to hold onto Abbie, “Abigail, we need to go.”

“Wanda,” Visions voice was tight, “I can not allow you to go.” 

“Then don’t,” Wanda didn’t even look at vision, just flung a hand back. 

The red mist surrounded Vision and suddenly he was being slammed down all of the floors in the avengers compound. Abbie screamed, her sobs wracking her body, shaking with pure fear as the entire building shook. Harley cursed, pulling Abbie closer, moving towards the door. 

The ceiling cracked and Harley looked up. He pushed Abbie away, throwing her far away from him. He heard Abbie scream. A flaring pain crawled through his arm as he fell.

He made eye contact with Clint. He watched as the man in question turn away. Abbie was screaming his name. Harley couldn't breath. The last thing he saw before his vision went black was Abbie, sobbing at his chest in terror.  
  
  


_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ One Day Before Siberia _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

 

Harley hated having his arm broken. His bright pink cast was awful, but he supposed that’s what he deserved for sneaking out without Pepper or Tony’s knowledge. The past few days had been actual hell though. Pepper was constantly checking in, making sure he was okay, and Abbie genuinely didn’t leave his side unless she absolutely had too. It was miserable. Plus the chewing out he had gotten from both Pepper and Tony was epic and absolutely horrible. 

To say that they were angry was an understatement. They were fucking pissed as hell. It was rage, mixed with a big healthy dose of fear, if Harley was honest. They had both been terrified of what was going to happen to Harley. Luckily, he had escaped with just a broken arm and a minor concussion. He was going to be okay. Pepper had yelled at him as if her life depended on it, though. She had been shaking with rage. Or at least with fear. 

Tony hadn’t been much better. 

Harley was pretty sure that he was lucky though, because right as Tony had begun to tear into Harley for his actions, he had gotten a tip off that Captain America and the people who hurt his son would be at an airport in Germany. Tony had immediately called the head of the accoards, making sure that the German government knew to evacuate the area and get any and all civilians out of the area. He then turned on his heel, yelling that he had something he needed to do, but that their conversation wasn’t over. 

Harley had deflated, all of his energy draining out of him. Abbie wasn’t fairing much better. 

He had opted to sit in the living room with Abbie by his side, watching from the suit the actions at the airport. He and Abbie had laughed during Spider-Mans introduction, but Abbie had otherwise been quiet. Harley tried to pretend that it wasn’t because of Clint and Wanda. 

Abbie crashed towards the meat of the fight, and as much as Harley didn’t want to, he knew he should find a way to get Abbie to her bed. She hadn’t been sleeping since the incident at the compound. 

Slowly and carefully, he hissed between his teeth as he picked up Abbie with one arm, glad she was still tiny and that he had carried much heavier metal while welding. Carefully He made his way to Abbie’s room, getting Friday to open all the doors. He dropped her as gently as he could onto the bed. She was still fast asleep. 

“God Abbie,” He muttered, looking away from her sleeping form, “You need to sleep more.” 

Silence greeted him, but he talked anyway, “It wasn’t your fault, kiddo. You know it wasn’t. It was my choice to sneak us out of the Tower. And even more it was my choice to throw you out of the way.” 

He glanced at her, “I know you’ve been scared lately, and that didn’t help but nothing is going to happen to me. I’m always going to be here, okay kiddo?” 

Her light snoring answered him. He remembered when they had lived in a two bedroom house with one bathroom, a kitchen, and a living room. Barely enough space for the four of them. Four year old Abbie, Seven year old Harley, and their parents. Harley had prefered sleeping in the shed that he had carved out as his own as he designed switch boards and everything he wanted. 

He remembered the night that had all changed. He was nine. Abbie was six. Their dad left. And suddenly Abbie couldn't be away from him. She was scared, about their dad. About what was going to happen to them. He didn’t have answers then, and he didn’t have answers now. God he was an awful big brother. He left the room, turning on a night light, and turning the main light off. 

He sat back down on the couch just in time to watch Rhodey fall. 

 

“Hey,” his voice was quiet, “Rhodey, hey, its okay.” 

The hospital room was quiet, except for Rhodey who was stairing at him wide eyed, as he woke up, “Kid… What happened?” 

“You were taken out,” Harley kept his voice low, looking to where a sleeping Abbie was sitting on a sleeping Pepper’s lap, “You got shot in the lower spine.” 

“Lower spine…” His voice trailed off, “Don’t tell me. Please don’t tell me.” 

“I’m so sorry, Rhodey,” Harley’s voice was heavy. He took a breath, “Me and Tony have both started drafting a way for you to walk again but…” 

“Who did it?” 

“Vision.” 

“Why the fuck,” Rhodey hissed, but then lowered his voice again, “Would he attack me? We were on the same team.” 

“You guys still are,” Harley ran a hand through his hair, trying not to cry, “He was aiming for Wilson.” 

“Did Wilson even try to catch me?” 

“No.”

Rhodey looked angry, “Where the fuck is Tony?” 

“He had to go interrogate Wilson,” Harley’s voice was tense, “Something that he said. Something about super soldiers.” 

“Why didn’t he wait until I had woken up?” 

“Sooner he gets this storm over with sooner he can work on making you legs.”

“He..” Rhodey looked slightly helpless, “You two are really going to make me new legs?” 

Harley stared at him, his eyes stinging, “Rhodey, you’re my uncle. I swear to god you’re gonna walk again if I can help it.” 

“Kid…” 

“I’m sorry that this happened,” Harley wiped the tears away with the back of his hand, not letting them run down his face, “And I swear to god that I ain’t about to let you suffer more than you need too. I’m so fuckin’ sorry, Rhodey. I’m so sorry.” 

“Kid,” Rhodey’s voice was stern, and he moved his arm to place his hand on Harley’s, “You’re brilliant. And maybe it's the shock talking, or the exhaustion, but I believe in you. There is no way in hell that you don’t make me walk again. You wanna know how I know?” 

“How?” 

“Because you’re fucking Harley Keener-Stark. I don’t think there’s a damn thing in this world you can’t do. That includes building me new legs.” 

Harley choked out a laugh, “God Rhodey, you’re right. Me and Tony. Together. We’ll build you new legs. I swear on my Mama’s grave.” 

“I know, kiddo. I know.”  
  


Harley got back around nine that night, and headed to the roof, a place he had been going to a lot in the past few weeks. He was expecting the roof of the Stark Tower to be empty. Instead he found the silhouette of a boy. He cautiously approached him, “Hey.” 

The Spider-Man turned towards him, “Hi.” 

“Are you okay?” 

“Could be better,” His voice was soft, “Could have saved Mr. Rhodes.” 

Harley flinched, “I don’t think you could have. I watched the tapes. You did fantastic, but you were clearly out of it by the end of the fight.” 

“I shouldn’t have been.” 

“I don’t know about that,” Harley sat down next to him, letting his legs dangle off the edge, “Tony hasn’t said much about you, but he did let it slip you’re only a few months older than me. I don’t think that I could have done any of that, let alone still be able to get up after it.” 

“But that’s different,” His voice was tight. Harley felt like he knew it, but he couldn’t place it. Spider-Man took a deep breath before continuing, “You aren’t enhanced, Harley- I’m assuming you’re Harley Keener by the way, because I have no idea who else could be on the roof of Stark Towers.” 

“I am Harley Keener.” 

“Good,” His voice was still tight, but Harley could hear the relief in it, “It would have been weird if it was anyone else. Just because you’re Mr. Starks son you know?” 

“I don’t know about that,” Harley let out a light chuckle, “But I promise you that it’s just me.” 

“I’m glad.” 

They sat in a soft silence for a few minutes, before Harley spoke up again, “Either way. I think you’re being to harsh on yourself, Spider-Man.” 

“I’m not,” His voice was very tight at this point, “I was gifted with powers. I should be able to use them to help people. And because I wasn’t fast enough, and good enough, I couldn’t help Mr. Rhodes.

“I had them,” His voice cracked, “I had the Falcon and Barnes pinned down, and now it doesn’t even matter, because Mr. Rhodes still got hurt.” 

Harley looked away from him, “I think you did everything you could. And I think that you’re a fifteen year old kid, who was going up against a bunch of asshat adults. I think that no matter how gifted you are, the ability to take down a few fully trained superheroes is hard. I think you did a great job.” 

“You really know what to say don’t you?” Spider-Man's voice was a lot less tight, and he almost sounded a little heart sick.   
  
“I try.” 

“Sure you do,” Sarcasm was deeply embedded into his voice, “I was meaning to ask when we eventually got introduced but, how's the arm?” 

“In pain,” He groaned, shivering slightly at the temperature of the night, “My sister has barley let me out of her sight since it happened.” 

Spider-Man looked at him, “What did happen anyway?” 

“I pushed my sister out of the way of some rubble that was falling when Scarlet Witch took out the Vision.” 

“Holy fuck,” Spider-Man’s voice was once again shaky, and Harley almost felt bad for telling him this, “If I was your sister I wouldn’t let you out of my sight either.” 

Harley’s face felt warm for some reason, “Well then I guess I’m lucky that you’re not my sister.” 

“I don’t know about that, I might want to keep you in my sight.” 

“Ha ha,” Harley shook his head a soft smile on his face, “You’re so funny.” 

“I try.” 

“Sure you do,” Harley quoted him, before running a hand through his hair, “It’s late, Spider-Man.” 

“You’re right,” Spider-Man’s voice was quiet as he stood up, “My folks will be wanting me home.” 

“Abbie is probably losing her mind with worry right now,” He glanced down at his shoes, looking at Spider-Man through thick lashes, “Walk me to the door, though?” 

“Of course,” Spider-Man sounded like he was grinning, as he walked towards the door to the roof, stopping in front of it, “Bye, Harley.” 

“Bye Spider-Man.” 

Spider-Man ran off the roof, shooting his web to catch himself. 

  
  


**The ultimate Mechanic**

i just met Spider-Man

and 

im in love with Spider-Man

**Do NOT Talk To ME**

Really now?

**May The Force**

Oh?

**Be With You**

BFJLBHLADH WHAT 

  
  


_ The Events of The Avengers Civil War  _

_ Day of Siberia _

_ Three Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming _

_ Four Months Until the Incident  _

 

It wasn’t alarming when Tony’s location went off map. It wasn’t alarming when Friday told them that Tony was heading to Siberia. It wasn’t alarming when Friday alerted them to Captain America and James Barnes were there. It was slightly alarming when Friday Alerted Pepper that Tony was getting into a fight with two super soldiers. However, no one was to scared. No matter what happened between them, no matter how much Harley didn’t trust Rogers, it didn’t change the fact where they were friends.

No, they weren’t actually alarmed and panicked until Friday’s frightened voice came to them, stating that she had lost all contact with the iron armor.

“What?!” Rhodey screamed, his hands balling into fists on the arms of his wheelchair, “What do you mean you’ve lost contact with the armor?!” 

“Captain Rogers disabled the arc reactor, Sir,” Her voice was still panicked. 

Pepper’s head shot up, “Steve knows that’s his main power source right?!”    
“I assume so.” 

“Fuck,” Rhodey growled, “This can’t be happening. Friday, send Tony’s last known coordinates.” 

“He’s in Siberia, sir.”

“We need to get him out of there,” Pepper’s voice was shaking, “The armor has taken enough hits that we’ve lost contact with it, there's no way he won’t freeze- metal isn't- it's not an insilator- god what should we do.” 

“Friday, get the Iron Redemption armor ready,” Harley’s voice was shaky, “I’m going after him.” 

“Absolutely not!” Pepper snapped, wheeling on him, “You’re already hurt Harley Keener, do not think for a split second that I’m going to send you into a battlefield where we don’t know what’s happening!” 

“Someone needs to go save Tony!” 

Rhodey sighed, rubbing his temple, “But that someone can’t be you, Harley.” 

“Why not?” His voice was raising, “Why can’t it?! He needs help! He needs my help!” 

“Harley!” 

“He’s my dad!” Harley was crying at this point, angry tears streaming down his face, “He needs my help!” 

“And what do you think will happen if Rogers is still there and decides to take you out too?!” Peper was screaming, her usually calm composure broken, “Tony can’t lose you, Harley! I can’t lose you! Abbie can’t lose you!” 

Harley let out a loud and ugly sob, “And I can’t lose him!” 

“You will not,” Vision spoke up, “Friday has armed me with his last coordinates. I will go, and report back immediately. 

Pepper turned to him, “Bring back my fiance.” 

“I’ll bring him back,” Visions voice was stern, and he rose into the air, “Alive. I promise you.” 

He phased through the roof. 

Harley turned to Pepper, “I can’t lose him.” 

“Harley,” Pepper snapped, “None of us can! You really think that I could?! Or that Rhodey could?! But sending you would just hurt you more!” 

“I don’t give a fuck if it hurts me!” Harley roared, tears streaming down his face as he slammed his fist onto the table, “I want Tony back here! Safe!” 

“So do we!” 

Harley couldn’t take this. He couldn’t breath and he couldn’t take this. The room was spinning, but he just ran. He ran out of there and onto the roof, with the cold air and birds. He screamed, slamming his unbroken fist onto the roof and he let go. 

He was choking on sobs, and shaking so hard he doesn’t even realize strong arms have wrapped around him, “Harley, hey, Harley, its okay. Its okay.” 

He shakes harder, sobbing into Spider-Man's shoulders, “We lost contact with the iron man armor, this isn’t okay, god nothing is okay!” 

“Mr. Stark is tough,” Spider-Man adjestuded the two of them so Harley was practically in his lap as he cried, “He’ll be okay.” 

“I can’t lose him,” Harley was shaking, “He’s the only dad I’ve ever known- he he showed me how to drive when I was eleven- he taught me how to throw a punch- I can’t-” 

“And you won’t,” Spider-Man rocked Harley back in forth in his arms, “You won’t lose him.” 

“I just lost my mom,” Harley sobs even harder into Spider-Man’s arms, “I just lost my mama, and now, and now I’m losin’ the only other person I’ve ever had as a parent- god, I’m- fuck-”

“It’s going to be okay!” 

“It's not going to be ‘kay!” Harley screamed, burying his face into Spider-Man’s shoulder, “Nothin’ has been ‘okay since my mama died! Since my mama left me the fuck alone with my baby sister that can’t lose anyone else! Can’t lose me, can’t lose Tony! I can’t even do this now, what am I gonna do if we find Tony and he’s not okay?!”

“He will be,” Spider-Man's voice was sure and certain, not wavering, “He will be. Maybe he will be beaten up and broken down, but he will get there. You, Harley Keener-Stark, wil be there for him and make sure he’s okay.” 

“How do you know?!”

“Because I know you.” His voice was stern, “We may have only just met, but I know enough about you to know who you are, Harley Keener. You’ll help. You’ll always help. Especially people you care about.” 

Harley was sobbing, into Spider-Mans chest. Spider-Man just held him. 

 

Vision found Tony, and brought him to the nearest hospital he could find. The damage that was done on him was almost immeasurable. Six broken ribs, a shattered collarbone, internal bleeding galore. It was gruesome. His face was swollen, and his throat was so badly bruised that he had to be placed in a medically induced Coma in order to help him breath. 

It was bad. 

It was Horrible. 

But Tony Stark was alive, and Harley Keener was so fucking thankful for that. He was going to be okay. Harley was going to make sure that he was going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK\
> 
> SHOUT OUT TO EMRYSCZERNY ON TUMBLR FOR HELPING ME BETA READ
> 
> on the real not tho, i'm very unsure abt this chapter, so tell me what you think.


	6. Cover Me In Roses by Holden Laurence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spider-Man HoCo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> JFKDLSBAFJL SO ITS HERE
> 
> I hope y'all like it! 
> 
> Also, when you get to the scene (And trust me, you'll know what I'm talking about) the song to listen to is Cover Me in Roses, by Holden Laurence (Its on the Pakner Playlist)

_Two Months Before the events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Three Months Until the Incident_

_Three Months Until Harley’s Birthday_

 

“Joining us next,” The media host made a gesture, “Is the Stark kids!”

Harley stepped out, feeling ridiculous, but putting on a Media smile and waving. Abbie trailed next to him, waving to the audience with a wide and genuine smile.

Harley sat down, “Great to be here Mr. Kimmel.”

“Please,” he grinned, “Call me Jimmy.”

“I’m Abbie,” Abbie introduced herself, leaning over Harley and holding out her hand, “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Jimmy.”

The audience laughed, as Harley sighed, “Abbie…”

“Yeah, yeah,” Abbie rolled her eyes and sat back up, “Don’t mortify you in front of the cameras.”

Jimmy laughed, “You’re afraid that your younger sister will embarrass you?”

“She knows to much,” Harley sent a mini glare at her, “Way to much.”

“Not like I keep track of all the times you’ve almost blown up the lab!”

“Abbie!”

“You’ve almost blown up the lab?” Jimmy asked, a grin in his voice.

“Three times!”

“Okay, that is not true!” Harley protested, much to the audiences amusement, “It’s been about five times. But! I have had good reasons!”

“Like what,”  Jimmy asked, amusement imbedded into his voice, “It doesn’t seem like there should be any reason to blow up anything!”

Harley snorted, “First of all, you know that’s not true. Second of all, in layman’s terms, I was making sure that the Spider suit I’ve been designing works well against combustion.”

“Oooohhhhh,” Abbie grinned at her brother, “Spider-Maaaaan.”

“Abbie, I won’t hesitate to hit you.”

“So Spider-Man, huh?” Jimmy asked, a smile on his face, “The hero from Queens huh?”

“Yeah,” Abbie snorted, “Harley is in love with him!”

“I am not- Spider-Man if you’re watching this, I am not in love with you!”

JImmy grinned, “Why not?”

“For starters?” Harley began to count on his hands, “I’ve never seen his face, he and I have only talked a few times, and despite how gay I am, not even I fall for a boy I know nothing about.”

“Nothing about,” Abbie snorted, “Like you haven’t been sneaking out every night to the roof!”

“Abbie, I’m serious about hitting you!”

Jimmy laughed againee, “Now what's this? Secret rendezvous on the roof?”

“No,” Harley sighed, rubbing his temple, “Me and him talk. I design him new suits. It’s strictly business.”

“I’ve read your texts and-“

Harley slapped a hand over her mouth, glaring at her, “I will hit you!”

She glared right back, mumbling against his hand, “Like you could.”

“I hate you,” Harley retracted his hand, “Either way, there’s nothing going on between me and The Man Spider.”

Jimmy laughed again, before turning his attention to Abbie, “And are there any superheroes you like, little miss?”

Abbie shrunk back. Her mind was still fresh with Wanda and what had happened with Harley’s newly uncasted arm. She glanced at him, her eyes downcast.

Harley laughs nervously, “I’m more of the superhero fan in our house-”

“I liked The Scarlet Witch,” Abbie whispered, “I liked her until she broke my brothers arm.”

The audience gasped in horror. Harley looked at her with wide eyes, “Abbie-”

Abbie looked up, letting her voice grow stronger, “We don’t really talk about it, but thats what happened. I got into an argument with Pepper because I wanted to talk to Wanda, and Harley took me to the compound because I was sad, and she proceeded to throw Viz through the floor and sent a crack in the roof which fell on Harley when he pushed me out of the way.”

“Abbie,” Harley hissed at her, “It’s fine.”

Abbie glared at him, “It’s not fine-"

“Hold on,” Jimmy paused, “I thought you told the press that it was an accident in the lab?”

Harley rubbed his temple, “I did. My own idea. I just… didn’t want everyone asking me about it. It was terrifying.”

“He saved my life,” Abbie looked directly at the camera, “He’s a hero.”

The crowd seemed like it was in aw. Jimmy seemingly capitalized on this, “Let’s give it up for Harley Stark everybody!”  
  


“Abbie, you should go to bed.” Harley’s voice was calm and quiet.

Abbie nodded sleepily, “Okay.”

The dark sky was brewing with storm clouds and Harley was feeling just how late it was. They had just gotten home from a fairly successful public appearance at some talk show that he really should have payed more attention too. Harley felt tiredness deep into his bones but he had one more thing to do. He slipped into his pajamas, and a gray sweatshirt.

“It seems we have a problem with spiders,” He called to Spider-Man as he walked towards the edge of the roof.

Spider-Man turned, “A small one maybe.”

He continued to pace on the edges of the roof, and Harley sat down, right next to the end of his path, “Whats up then, bug boy?”

“Nothing,” Spider-man sighed, looking at him, “Everything.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

“I’m worried about Mr. Stark,” Spider-Man plopped down right next to him, “Shouldn’t he be awake by now?”

“He’s alive,” Harley pulled his knees to his chest, “The coma is only until the damage is healed enough that he can wake up.”

“I still can’t believe Captain America did that to him,” Spider-Man sounded horrible and choked up, “That he’s so hurt that he can’t wake out without being in immeasurable pain.”

Harley glanced at the sky, “Yeah. It’s… rough.”

“I’m sorry,” Spider-Man looked at him, “I’m talking about how upset I am about this to his kid.”

“Hey now,” Harley looked back to him, voice quiet, “You’re aloud to be upset. Tony has a tendency to make an impression on people and it sucks when he’s not there anymore, you know?”

“Yeah. I do.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much,” Harley shivered in the night air, “He’ll be up and running again. It’s Tony, he’s always gonna be okay.”

“Are you sure?”

Harley hummed, “Yeah. They’re planning to wake him up soon.”

“I thought he was in too much pain to be woken up?”

“He is,” Harley ran a hand through his hair, “But he needs to wake up.”

“Ah.”

They sat in silence for a few moments, and Harley felt like he as hyper aware of Spider-Man. Every small movement and fidget seemed to put Harley on edge in a way he couldn’t describe. Not that Spider-Man put him on edge, but more of a… notice. He noticed what Spider-Man was doing.

Spider-Man’s eyes were glued on his shaking form, “Are you cold?”

“A tad,” he picked at his pajama shorts, “I’ll be okay.”

“Don’t get sick on me.”

“I won’t,” Harley said, his voice soft, “Every night, I’ll be on this roof if you want to talk.”

“Really?”

“Sure. So long as you remain cool.”

Spider-Man let out a snort, “I’m always cool, Keener.”

“Well I don’t know about that,” Harley chuckled softly, “I think you’re a bit of a dork.”

“Pfft. Nonsense.”

“Nope, just the truth.”

Spider-Man grinned under the mask, “Says the guy who’s obviously in love with me.”

“Oh my god,” Harley groaned, face palming, “I’m going to kill my sister.”

“No you’re not.”

“Try me.”

Their banter continue through the night, all of the exhaustion he had been feeling since the talk show, seemingly disappeared. It was nice.

 

_The events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Two Months Until the Incident_

_Two months until Harley’s birthday_

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

SO LIKE

ARE YOU

COMING

TO THE THING

 

**Be With You**

Harley.

It’s. It’s four AM.

Please don’t text me.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

R U COMING TO THE LAB THINGY TMMRW OR NOT

 

**Be With You**

Its tomorrow already, Harley.

And also, yes I am.

Spider-Man wants some new web slingers, remember?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

uuuum first of all

im spider-mans personal mechanic

  


**Be With You**

I don’t know, he did ask me to make them.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

waht

no he didnt

 

**Be With You**

BJSLFBS YOURE RIGHT HE DIDNT

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

SEE IM RIGHT AND YOU SHOULD SAY IT

 

**Be With You**

Pfft whatever

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

im spider-man’s favorite

 

**Be With You**

Probabbly

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

not probabbly most defintly

he loves me

 

**Be With you**

I thought you loved him?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

i dont love him but like

if he was down

id be down

 

**Be With You**

BFDJSLFHAFHDJLJLVBHLDJGF

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

 

**Be With You**

HARLEY

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

to be honest idk

but i actually think hes a pretty chill dude and

yeah

 

**Be With You**

So like,

Do you like Spider-Man?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

hes my bro

 

**Be With You**

You know thats not what I meant.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

as ive told the GC

Id let him smash

 

**Be With You**

I STILL DONT KNOW WHAT HTHAT MEANS

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

oh my innocent, niave, Peter

 

**Be With You**

I am none of those things

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

u totally are

 

**Be With You**

Pfft shut up.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

no

 

**Be With You**

Either way,

Is Mr. Stark going to be working with us?

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Honestly

I don’t know.

He’s been working, and redesigning, and working, and redesigning, and working, and redesigning Rhodey’s legs until he feels the’r perfect.

I’ve been helping him a lot but…

 

**Be With You**

I get it, he’s been stressed.

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Don’t worry about it. Once he gets it perfect he’ll feel better.

He’s been like that since I’ve known him lol.

 

**Be With You**

Yeah, I know.

  


Harley wouldn’t say he’s been ditching school, but he wouldn’t say he had been attending either. Ever since Tony woke up, Harley’s time had been about 65% working in the lab and 35% at school. The issue with that was, when he returned to school after four to six days not at school, was that he had no fucking idea what was going on.

Not academically, no never academically. But socially? He was so fucking lost.

Seemingly, Peter had quit everything because of the Stark internship- which Harley understood because they both had to work pretty hard after school, though Peter did a lot of his work at home. But in the action of Peter quitting everything, had seemingly revealed that he was in fact in a Stark internship and for some reason, no one seemed to believe him.

Cue Flash, who seemingly had learned nothing from the dicks that had coated his car, “So Penis Parker has been lying to everyone.”

“About what,” Harley didn’t look up from his phone, “Being a super genius?”

“No, about being on a Stark Internship.”

Harley looked up, “Oh yeah, no that’s a real thing, speaking of which.”

He turned to where Ned was sitting, “Hey Ned, can you tell Peter to answer his phone? I sent him the update to Spider-Man’s webs last night, but he ignored it.”

“Uh,” Ned blinked, “I think he did get it because he called me at seven ranting about how you’re an asshole that needs to go to bed at a normal time and not five AM."

“He’s a little bitch,” Harley sighed turning back to his phone, “who needs to develop insomnia if he ever hopes to make it in this world.”

Flash made a sound like he’d been strangled, “Wait so the internship is real?! Parker hasn’t been lying off his ass?”

“I don’t think Peter has an ass to lie off,” Harley rolled his eyes, “Plus, he doesn’t really like lying. Last week I wanted to pull a prank on Spider-Man and he freaked out about honesty and truth or something."

“Nice to see he’s still a wimp then,” Flash grinned, laughing.

Harley looked at him, glaring, “Peter is anything but a wimp, believe it or not. Trust me.”

“Somehow,” Flash’s mood did a 180, and he was glowering at Harley. It was actually kind of pathetic, “I don’t believe you.”

“Just go sit down and stop making an ass of yourself,” Harley glanced back at his phone, “class is about to start.”  
  


Harley really wasn’t paying attention in gym. He wasn’t actually doing the exercise he was supposed to, something about his arm still being hurt. Which was a bit of a lie, crafted by Tony so that he could have more time to work. Not that he actually cared. Primarily, he used the free time to draft up new and improved technology for Rhodey or Spider-Man. It was a pretty fun past time if he was going to be honest with himself.

The best part about not actually having to do any work in gym, besides not having to work out at all, was the fact that he could just observe his friends being complete failures of human beings. Specifically, so he could watch Ned and Peter be clusterfucks in the form of humans. This particular moment was probably the best one he had seen so far.

“Peter knows Spider-Man!”

Harley’s eyes snapped to Ned, and he grinned. While he was very aware that Spider-Man dropped by the labs a lot, he was very very curious about where this was going. Peter let out a straggled sound, “Yeah! But I’m not supposed to talk about it!”

Flash snorted loudly and obnoxiously, “So are you and Spider-Man like best friends or something?”

“No-”

Ned jumped up before Peter could finish his sentence, “Yes! They talk all the time.”

“Dude,” Peter hissed, suddenly looking at Harley for help, “You guys should all know that Spider-Man likes Harley best.”

Harley grinned wider, “Only because I’m beautiful! But you know he likes you too!”

Peter made another strangled sound, realizing that Harley was in no way shape or form gonna help him, “Yeah, he likes everyone!”

“So he won’t mind showing up at the party?” Flash asked, a grin on his voice.

Harley answered for him, “He probably would.”

Peter shot him a glare. Harley just smiled and waved, as he watched Peter dig himself into a hole that he was sure he could probably get out of.   


 

_The events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Two Months Until the Incident_

_Two months Until Harley’s birthday_

 

 

Harley was friends with a bunch of nerds.

That’s what he had decided when MJ had looked at him like he was stupid, and said, “You realize that none of us will be here this weekend right?”

He had not, in fact, known that, “What? Where are you going?”

“It’s Decathlon babey,” Ned smiled at Peter, “and Peter is coming because Peter is our strongest player.”

Peter sighed, “Alright, alright, I get it, I’m going.”

“Hold on,” Harley made a T with his hands, “Why did I not know that you guys where in Nerd Club?”

“I mean,” Ned shoved a fry in his mouth, “I’m pretty sure we’ve told you.”

Peter looked at him, “Yeah I’ve definitely mentioned it before.”

“Whatever,” Harley muttered, rolling his eyes, “Nerd Club Members.”

And that had been that. They were nerd club members and that was all. End of conversation, etc etc. The world was spinning fine and Harley was cooped up in the lab all weekend.

And then the live coverage of the Washington Monument’s Elevator going down came on the screen. And for a moment, Harley was almost impressed. A gut feeling in his stomach said that somehow, some way, it was probably Peters fault. So he was almost impressed. And then he was very scared because holy shit, that’s rough.

Abbie was freaking out more than he was though, “Harley! Your friends are in trouble!”

“Abbie,” Harley snapped in front of her face, trying to figure out how to snap her out of her pacing, “They’re going to be okay.”

“Are you sure?!”

“Yeah, look, Spider-Man’s on the scene,” Harley scrolled through his phone and then looked up, “Spider-Man? What the hell is he doing in Washington?”

Abbie looked at him weird, “Why do you care more about Spider-Man than your friends?”

“I do not care about Spider-Man more than my friends!”

“Uh huh.”

“Okay so,” Harley admitted, shrugging, “Maybe I may have a small feelings for Spider-Man and I care about what happens to him.”

“But not your friends?”

Harley threw his hands up, “Of course I care about my friends! But I also know that they’re probably going to be fine! I’m more worried about if Spider-Man is going to be able to meet on the roof!”

“Harley?”

“Yes?”

“You’re a bad friend.”

“Abbie I will hit you.”

  


Spider-Man was already on the roof when Harley got there. He slipped next to him, sitting down pretty close to the edge, “Hiya.”

“Hey,” Spider-Man responded.

Harley grinned at him, “So, I saw on the news that you saved a bunch of people. I have to thank you, my friends were in that elevator.”

“Really?” Spider-man’s voice was teasing as he spoke, “If I had known that, I’d have been faster.”

“Oh really?” Harley raised an eyebrow, “So you save people based on who they’re friends with?”

“Only when their friend is cute.”

Harley felt himself blush, “Yeah right. You have too much of a hero complex to actually leave people hanging when they’re in danger.”

“The sad part is,” Spider-Man leaned back, “you’re completely right.”

“I know. I’m always right.”

“I wouldn’t put it past you,” Spider-Man chuckled loudly.

Harley observed him, glad that the suit was a little bit skin tight. Spider-Man was pretty well defined. He sighed, looking up to the sky, “Thank you though, for saving my friends.”

“It’s all part of the job.”

“But still, thank you.”

Spider-Man stood up, “You know that you’ve said that three times now.”

Somewhere off in the city, sirens went off. Spider-Man looked at Harley, “I have to go, beautiful.”

The image of the webslinger pulling away, swinging through New York City was ingrained in Harley’s mind, just like the word beautiful was engraved in his brain.

  


 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

Holy Shit

the hings i would let Spider-Man do to me

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

So you’ve mentioned

 

**May The Force**

Please dont go into detail

 

**Be With You**

W H A T

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

listen

l i s t e n

he was flirting with me

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

Or were you flirting with him

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

im always flirting with him

 

**Be With You**

Dude, you work with him!

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

so

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

Tsk tsk, Peter

Do not take this chance away from harley

If he wants to fuck a spider

Let him do it

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

yeah dont slut shame me peter

 

**Be With You**

HDSJLFVHSAJLFVHLJFVHLFHDSJLFGHLF

  


**May The Force**

Harley you slut shame yourself

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

yeah

it comes with being a slut

 

**Be With You**

Hey, I don’t think you’re a slut Harley!

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

No he is

 

**May The force**

No, he is

 

**The ultimate mechanic**

no i am

 

**Be With You**

But

But

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

do not doubt my sluttyness

its rude

i worked for that reputation

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

Yeah peter

Thats fucking rude

 

**May The Force**

Oh my god, Peter, thats so rude

 

**Be With You**

ISNT IT RUDE TO SLUT SHAME

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

not when you’ve worked as hard as I have for the reputation

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

Aren’t you a virgin though

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

tht was a private convo you bitch

god

rude

 

**DO NOT TALK TO ME**

Either way

What exactly would you let Spider-Man do to you

 

**The ultimate Mechanic**

spicy stuff

ned is pure and is on here so like

tell you in the DMS

 

**May The Force**

THANK

 

**Be With You**

WHAT DO YOU MEAN

  
  
  
  


_The events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Two Months Until the Incident_

_Two months Until Harley’s birthday_

  
  


“We won’t be working with Spider-Man anymore.”

Harley glanced up at Tony as he desuited in the lab, “Are you sure that's a good idea?”

“Did you even see,” Tony seethed, as he started to pace the floor of the lab, “What he pulled with the ferry? I told him to take it easy- be a friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man- but no! Thats too hard for him!”

“He was trying to help,” Harley protested, wiping the grease off his hands, “Doesn’t that count as anything?”

“No!” Tony snapped, “Not when it means that he could get hurt!”

“Is he hurt?”

“Thankfully not,” Tony paused his pacing and turned to Harley, “But that doesn’t excuse the fact that he really really could’ve been. It wasn’t okay, and he needs to be careful.”

Harley frowned again, “Are you sure you’re not overreacting? Wouldn’t the best way to keep him safe is to keep him protected?”

“Keep him-” Tony tuned to him, “That’s what I’m doing! You think I want a 15 year old kid running around the streets almost killing himself with the effort of being a superhero?!”

“You superhero types will do anything, you know that right?”

“Well he’s a kid!” Tony shouted, his eyes more scared than angry.

Harley frowned deeper, “He’s still going to try to be a hero.”

“No he won’t,” Tony started to pacing again, “I took away the suit.”

“You took away the suit?” Harley sputtered, “That’s not a good thing Tony! He can get hurt now!”

“No he won’t because he’s not going to be a hero!”

Tony stood there, his breathing heavy, and he ran a hand across his face, “I’m canceling the internship program.”

“What?” Harley sputtered again, slamming his hands down on his work space, “Tony, that's ridiculous-”

“Its not!” Tony snapped back, “If they can’t listen to me, then no one gets to have it!”

“Okay,” Harley stepped away from his work space, “I think you need to calm down. I really need you to think about what you’re doing.”

He walked away from Tony, not willing to deal with Tony’s fit. As much as he respected and cared about him, He found it ridiculous that this is what he was choosing to do.

That night he went up to the roof.

That night, Spider-Man did not come.

  


_The events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_Two Months Until the Incident_

_Two months Until Harley’s birthday_

  
  


Harley looked up, when he noticed Flash standing in front of him, acting like he was god's gift to man. He sighed, turning off his phone, “Yes, Flash?”   
  
“You and I,” Flash sat next to him, wrapping an arm around Harley, “are going to the dance together.”

His grip on Harley’s arm was strong, not allowing him to recoil in disgust, “Um? No?”

“Come on,” Flash’s grip grew tighter, “Don’t act like you don’t like me.”

“I don’t like you? I have never liked you?”

His squeezed even harder, hard enough to make his arm hurt, “Come on now, don’t be like that.”

Harley was feeling trapped, just a little bit. He felt even more trapped when a boy who he didn’t know- maybe his name was Jason- slid up to his side, “Hey Harley, wanna go to the dance with me?”

“Um,” Harley looked at him, with a confused look on his face, “Do I-”

“Yeah you do!” Jason grinned, “Your dad can take us right?”

Harley felt his blood start to boil. Oh. This was these guys attempt to get to his father. That made him uncomfortable, but the thought flew out of his mind as Flash jerked up, hand still on Harley, bringing him with him.

“Flash,” he huffed, “Let go you’re hurting me.”

Flash either didn’t hear him or didn’t care, “Back off, dickwad-”

“Oh please,” Jason scoffed, “You’re not even gay Flash!”

“What does that have to do with anything?!”

“Uh, Harley’s a guy, and you don’t like guys!”

Harley pulled his arm away with a strong jerk that left him stumbling backwards onto someone’s chest. Peter looked at him, looked at the boys, and sighed, “Hey Harley?”

Harley looked up at him, “Yeah?”

“Wanna go with me?"

Harley grinned, taking himself out of Peter’s arms, “Why Peter, you’re asking me if I would want to go with you? Why I’d like nothing more.”

With that, he grabbed Peter’s hand speed walking to where Ned and MJ were doing sit ups. Flash and Jason didn’t notice, much to Harley’s relief. As soon as he was in the vicinities of his friends, he relaxed, “God, thank’s Peter.”

“No problem,” Peter blushed, looking at his shoes.

Ned looked up, “What just happened?”

“Flash was being a dick,” Harley explained, “Grabbing my arm and trying to force me to go to HoCo with him, and Peter here asked me to save me.”

“Wait,” MJ said raising an eyebrow, “I thought you were planning on asking Liz?”

Harley looked at Peter, confusion on his face, “Who’s Liz?”

“No one,” Peter’s voice cracked, and he shook his head, “No one important.”

Both Ned and MJ looked at Peter like he was insane. Harley just shrugged, checking his phone.

  
  


_The events of Spider-Man Homecoming_

_One Month Until the Incident_

_One month Until Harley’s birthday_

 

 

Harley wouldn’t say he was excited to go to the dance with Peter, but he wouldn’t say that he was completely dreading the idea. He wasn’t actually gonna put effort into his looks. The gucci suit was just something that he had lying around. And Abbie had wanted to practice her makeup skills anyway. And if he was honest, he did feel pretty.

The only issue was his hair. Normally, he left it messy- it was something that he had always considered charming, because his mom had liked his hair messy. It never looked good brushed and neat. He frowned in the mirror as he brushed his hair back, “God, this looks awful.”

“I don’t think so,” Pepper said from the doorway, a smile on her face, “I just think it needs a little styling.”

Harley looked at her, and gestured to his hair, “Be my guest.”

Pepper began her work, brushing his hair, and pulling his bangs back to put them in a small ponytail, “You really want to look good tonight, huh?”

“Nah,” Harley chuckled, “I’m not putting too much effort. It’s just with Peter, you know?”

Pepper rolled her eyes, grabbing a bobbie pen, “I think that’s why you’re putting in effort, Harley.”

“I’m really not putting in effort,” Harley protested, looking at himself in the mirror, “I only said yes to Peter because some asshats were trying to use me to get to Tony. You know. Fame seekers.”

“Watch your language, young man.”

Harley breathed out, “Woah.”

Harley didn’t normally feel very attractive. He was a pretty confident guy, but most of that was just for show. He wasn’t attractive but he was smart, and he had always been of the opinion that his brain made up for the rest of his flaws. Looking at the mirror now, though, he could completely say that he was beautiful.

He never really realized how many freckles he had, until his hair was pulled out of his face completely and the sea of dots was unleashed. It was kind of pretty. Abbie had done a fantastic job on his makeup, the soft nudes making his blue eyes pop out like lightening. The light pink lipstick he was wearing made him look, almost doll like.

He grinned at Pepper, “I look…”

“Fantastic?” Pepper grinned back at him, “Amazing? Stunning?”

“Yeah.”

Pepper winked at him, “I genuinely think you’re gonna knock him dead.”

“Not that I want too, but,” Harley whistled, “I bet I will.”

Pepper moved to the side, motioning for Harley to step through the door. Harley obliged, walking out, seeing Abbie pass by, mach nine potato gun in hand, “What are you doing with that?”

“Uh,” Abbie blinked, and then grinned, “Nothing important?”

“Do I want to know?”

Abbie smiled wider, “You probably do, but it doesn’t really matter.”

“I’m going to ignore that,” Harley sighed, ruffling her hair, “And I’m gonna go, Peter is probably in the kitchen.”

“Yeah, he definitely is,” Abbie didn’t even have the audacity to sound not amused, “Have fun on your date.”

“It’s not a date,” Harley shuffled past her, walking towards the kitchen. It wasn’t a date.

He walked in as Tony tried to frame him as excited, “You know, Harley hasn’t shut up about this since you asked.”

Harley rolled his eyes, “Don’t worry too much, Peter, I actually could give zero shits about this.”

Peter was looking at him with wide eyes, his cheeks red as a cherry. It was kind of cute. Harley grinned, “So are you ready to go?”

“Um,” Peter gulped, “Uh, yeah, yeah I am.”

Tony grinned at the two of them, “Just remember, don’t do anything I would have done at your age.”

“Tony, shut up!”

Peter got redder, “Mr. Stark it’s not like that!”

“Uh huh,” Tony shook his head, “Sure kids. Go wild.”

Harley grabbed Peter’s hand, “Come on, Peter, let’s leave Tony and his nasty thoughts alone. Happy’s driving us right?”

“Yeah,” Tony smiled, and took a sip out of his mug, “Be home before midnight.”

Harley rolled his eyes, waving goodbye to Tony. The elevator door closed, and Harley let go of Peter’s hand, “So what did Abbie do?”

“Why would you think she did something, ha ha,” Peter was looking away, his blush just as strong.

“Because she had the potato gun.”

Peter chuckled lightly, “That’s all the answer you need, then.”

“Yeah, don’t know where she found that,” Harley grinned at him, “I’m sorry about her. I’ve been trying to tell everyone that this isn’t a date but… you know how that goes.”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded, “Aunt May has been insisting that this is a date.”

“Is it?”

Peter opened his mouth, just as the elevator door opened, revealing Happy who looked anything but. He motioned for them to follow, “Guess I’m stuck on driver duty again, huh?”

“Sorry about that, Happy,” He grinned, “But you know Mr. Stark’s been busy.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Happy walked to the parking lot, opening the door, “I think he just wanted to avoid an awkward car ride with his son and his son’s date.”

Harley snorted, “It’s just Peter.”

“Yeah, just Peter.”

Peter was quiet, his eyes trailed on the ground. Harley nudged him with his elbow as they got in the car, and whispered, “Don’t take what they’re saying to rough. Tony doesn’t hate you, he just was angry at Spider-Man and took it out on everyone else.”

“Yeah,” Petter muttered, somehow looking even worse, “I get that.”

The ride to the dance was fairly short, because no matter how bad New York traffic was, Happy was always one step ahead.  The actual dance itself looked as horrible and as teen movie like as it possibly could. They stepped out of the car, and Peter immediately looked around. Harley did too, looking for their friends.

Peter’s breath hitched, but Harley paid no mind as he noticed Ned, “Oh hey, there Ned.”

He grabbed Peter’s hand, “Let's head in my dude.”

“Alright,” Peter sounded confused, like his mind was putting together a puzzle, “Alright.”

Harley felt himself grin, “Oh my god, do you see MJ in that dress?”

MJ, who had noticed them by this point responded to Harley’s grin with a middle finger, but Peter wasn’t paying attention. His eyes were on some girl from gym class. Liz, Harley’s brain supplied. He didn’t know why his heart hurt so much at the realization that this girl was the one that Peter had originally wanted to ask. She was beautiful, and suddenly all that confidence that Harley held drained out of him.

Peter coughed, “Um, hey, I’ll be right back.”

Harley watched, as Peter pulled himself away from Harley and walked towards Liz. He turned away, at his friend’s and grinned as he walked to them, “Heya.”

“What’s Peter doing?” MJ asked, raising an eyebrow, “Aren’t you his date?”

For some reason, those words stung. He grinned through the ache in his stomach though, “Not really.”

He glanced to where Peter had been. Neither Peter nor Liz were there. The sinking feeling returned. He frowned, trying to shake out of it. MJ’s brow furrowed, “You okay?”

“Yeah,” His voice cracked, “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

Harley scanned the rest of the room. No Peter. No Liz. Very few options were actually likely. Most likely though, was that he had gotten ditched. He smiled at MJ, ignoring the stinging in his eyes, “Actually no. I don’t feel so well. I think I’m gonna go home. I’ll see y’all.  
  


“Hey,” A voice called from Harley’s right, from where he sat perched on the roof. It was about one am, and freezing. Harley was still in his suit from the dance, but he wasn’t sure that it mattered.

Harley glanced at Spider-Man, quickly wiping the tears out of his eyes, “Hey. I thought you didn’t have access to that suit anymore?”

“I didn’t,” Spider-Man hissed as he sat down Next to Harley, “I found it on my bed when I got home.”

“Oh,” Harley sniffed, putting on a smile, “So how's life?”

“I should be asking you that, Harley,” His voice was concerned, “Why are you crying?”

“I’m not.”

Spider-Man looked at him, “You’re really going to lie to someone injured?”

“You’re injured?” Harley looked at him, wide eyed, “Where? Are you okay? What happened?”

“Harley, I’m fine,” Spider-Man told him with a heavy voice, “I’m more worried about why you’re sitting on the roof crying.”

“I’m not-”

Spider-Man might have been wearing a mask, but even he could read the look he was getting. He sighed, “Okay. Maybe I was crying. What does it matter?”

“It matters because you matter, a lot.”

Harley ran a hand through his hair, but held it, and curled in on himself, “It’s stupid.”

“I bet it’s not.”

“I just,” Harley felt his mouth go dry, “I got left at the homecoming dance.”

Spider-Man’s breath hitched, “Oh. That sucks.”

“Yeah, it really does,” Harley muttered, “I was just… getting my hopes up I guess. About the dance. About him.”

“What?” Spider-Man whispered, “What do you mean?”

Harley looked up at the sky, “I miss Peter.”

“Parker?”

“No- well yes, but no,” Harley shook his head, “My Peter. I’ve mentioned him before, the internet friend. I miss him. I used to talk to him every day, but now… he doesn’t talk to me. And it sucks, because I really loved him. And he would know what to do.”

“About?”

“Peter Parker,” Harley curled in on himself even more, “I went with him to the homecoming dance.”

“Isn’t that good?” Spider-Man whispered, “Do you like him?”

Harley paused, thinking about what he was going to say, “I tried not to like him. But yeah. I do.”

“Oh.”

“And it just sucks,” Harley’s voice cracked, “Because Peter Parker clearly doesn’t like me.”

“What do you,” Spider-Man cleared his throat, “What do you mean?”

Harley laughed dryly, “He ditched me at the dance. Plus he’s Peter Parker. Why would he go for someone like me?”

Spider-Man looked at him again, “Because you’re Harley Keener? You’re amazing!”

“No, I’m not,” Harley glanced at the ground, far far below them, “I’m a bit of a petty asshole, I don’t do anything nice. Peter didn’t like me at first, for a pretty good reason, because I’m just such a petty bitch that I didn’t like him and then he really didn’t like me and… I don’t know. It makes sense on why he wouldn’t like me. I’m a fucked up piece of shit, that’s petty and always kind of rude and just not very cool, and I’m not exactly attractive, and-”

“I don’t think that,” Spider-Man’s voice was solid and firm, “I think that you like to belittle yourself, and bottle up all of these things to the point where you don’t even let yourself think about them. I think that you like to mind read and pretend you know what Peter feels, because you’re scared to think about what could be. Most of all though, I think that you’re amazing. That you try so hard to be good, and it shows because you are. You’re so good, Harley Keener, you’re so good. You see all this bad stuff in yourself but that’s not true. You’re amazing.”

Spider-Man took a breath, “Harley, you’re- you’re so beautiful. You smile, and the entire world wants to see it because Harley, you take everyone’s breath away with just being you. You’re eyes, are so so expressive, and amazing, and have so much life in them- God Harley, you don’t even know how fucking amazing you really are do you? You’re so beautiful Harley- your freckles are so fucking cute, and you just-  You’re amazing Harley you have to believe me, you need to-”

Harley kissed him. Not actually, but close enough. The mask was blocking off the actual meeting of lips but Harley couldn’t take it. This guy- this hero- was sitting here, telling him everything Harley had wanted to hear that night and it was nice. God it was so nice. He may not have been the person that he actually wanted, but he was someone.

And he was someone that Harley did like, a lot. He may not be Peter Parker, but god, for a split second he wished that Spider-Man was. God he wished that they were the same person because then all of Harley’s problems would melt away. But… at the end of the day, he wasn't Peter. This wasn’t someone actually confessing to him. This was a friend, comforting another friend about a broken heart.

God he felt like an idiot.

Harley pulled back, wiping his eyes as he did so, “I’m sorry.”

Spider-Man just stared at him, so Harley continued, “I just… I’m just confused. I’m just confused.”

He stood up, walking away from Spider-Man quickly, not looking back. He had already messed up enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo??? 
> 
> What do you think? 
> 
> leave your thoughts and opinions below, and a big thank you to @emrysczerny on tumblr for helping me edit!!


	7. Lets Pretend by Del Water Gap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Harleys birthday!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHJKFBJFDLSBL im so so sorry, for not updating sooner!! I was basically just busy with school. I'm gonna be posting it like this from now on. Basically every weekend with week breaks. 
> 
> So little heads up for this fic, There is minor epxplict content in this. If you wanna skip this, its from "Just stay in the chair, Peter" to "Peter’s face was red, “Never doubted you.” " 
> 
> so yeah! Hope you like this!
> 
> Also this a tad short but like... hope you like it!

_ Three Weeks Until the Incident  _

_ Three Weeks Until Harley’s birthday  _

 

“Hold on,” Peter sat down at the lunch table, glancing around, “Where’s Harley?” 

MJ shrugged, “He was here earlier.” 

“And he was definitely here during chemistry,” Ned commented, joining them at the table, “So, I’m guessing he got picked up or is ditching us.” 

“Harley wouldn’t ditch us,” Peter protested looking around. 

“Yeah,” MJ gave Peter a dry look, “Though I wouldn’t put it past him after you ditched him.” 

Peter opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again, trying to find words, “I didn’t mean to.” 

“But you still did.” 

“Hold on,” Ned protested on Peter’s behalf, “He had to do Spider-Man things!” 

MJ rolled her eyes, shrugging, “And then he went and kissed him.” 

“First of all,” Peter put his head down, “He kissed me. Second of all, I was in a bit of shock under the realization that not only does Harley Keener love me in real life, but he liked my online persona, and my super hero one.” 

“So he likes you?” 

Peter looked at MJ, “It's not that simple! Does he actually like me, or does he like Spider-Man? Does he like Spider-Man or IronMan-DidNothingWrong?” 

“Uh dude,” Ned looked at him funny, “You realize those are all you, right?” 

“But which one does he like!” 

MJ sighed, face palming, “All three. Why don’t you just admit you’re afraid of your feelings and get on with it.” 

“I am not afraid of my feelings,” Both Ned and MJ looked at him, with a dead expression, and he sighed, “I’m not. It’s just.” 

He paused before beginning to explain, “When I met Harley, it was online- which he seemingly doesn’t know- and there was this air of being a complete stranger but best friends. It was nice. And even though it was real, it wasn’t like… real real. And I don’t know, now that it has a chance to be real real I just…” 

“Are afraid?” MJ sighed, rolling her eyes at his stupidity, “You’re breaking his heart, dude.” 

“I’m not!” 

Ned looked at him, brows furrowed, “Peter, I hate to break this too you, but you kind of are.” 

“I’m not trying to…” 

“Okay, well, lets review,” Mj held up a hand to start counting on his fingers, “You’ve stopped talking to him online, depriving him of his best friend-” 

“-I haven’t stopped talking to him, I just haven’t been talking to him as much-”

“-Who he was in love with, only to convince him that you hate him in real life-” 

“That is not my fault! I don’t hate him!” 

“-Maybe not, but Harley needs that spelt out for him, I mean, come on, the guys a bit of a dumbass.” 

Peter huffed, “He is not. He’s just oblivious.” 

“You haven’t exactly been dropping hints,” Ned pointed out, “Not about the internet friend thingy and not about the Spider-Man thing.” 

“Okay, but,” Peter was as red as a tomato as he said this, “Mr. Stark told me not to tell anyone.”

MJ motioned to herself and Ned, “Then why do we know?” 

“You both walked in on me in the suit.” 

“Okay that's fair,” Ned moved to grab his phone out of his bag, going to text someone. 

“Alright, we’re getting off topic,” MJ rolled her eyes at her friends, “The point of the matter is that you may not be trying to but you are leading him on.”

Peter stayed quiet, and MJ shook her head, “I just think that you need to take some action. You like him right?” 

“I’ve never liked anyone more,” Peter fidgeted, “But…” 

“But nothing,” MJ sighed, rolling her eyes again, “You like him. He likes you. Get on it.” 

“Okay but what about all the guys he’s dated?” 

MJ raised a brow at him, “You mean the guys who have asked him on a singular date that he went on but then turned them down as polite as Harley Keener can? The guys he barely knew for a few weeks? Versus you, someone he has known for a year and a half, has openly admitted to being his soulmate, and has kissed?” 

“God, Peter,” Ned glanced up, shaking his head at his best friend, “It’s bad enough that you were jealous over the fact that Harley kissed Spider-Man-” 

MJ snorted, “Dude you are Spider-Man.”

“Yeah, that’s why he’s an idiot,” Ned continued, “Even more though, he literally spelt out his feelings and you’re out here questioning if he likes you because of some guys he barely knows."

“Okay, thats,” Peter frowned, curling in on himself a bit, “that’s pretty fair.” 

“Which is why,” Ned flashed his phone to Peter, “you should ask him out on his birthday.” 

Mj perked up, looking at Ned curiously, “That’s only a month away."

“Yeah, that’s not enough time to plan,” Peter fretted, still curled in on himself.

“No,” MJ rolled her eyes at her idiot of a friend, “that’s too much time for shit to go to hell.” 

“But,” Ned protested, sticking up for his friend, “Peter is a dumbass that doesn’t know how to ask people out.” 

“That’s not true!” Peter glared at his friends, pouting, “I can ask Harley out with no problem.” 

“Then tick tock, Peter,” MJ smiled at her friend in a way that was much more mocking than comforting and kind, “Tick tock.”   
  
  


Peter loved working at Stark Industries. While he mainly did Spider-Man related stuff, he was also given an actual internship to keep the cover completely. Granted, this internship was a lot of helping Mr. Stark in the labs with minor stuff and working with Harley on projects for himself. Well, for Spider-Man. 

So when walking into the labs, he was surprised to find just Mr. Stark working on some design for a new prosthetic arm. He called to him as he walked to his work desk, “Hey Mr. Stark.” 

“Hey kid,” Mr. Stark looked up, “Harley is upstairs.” 

“Oh,” Peter made eye contact with Mr. Stark, before taking a chance, “Um, hey, so, can I ask you something?” 

Mr. Stark nodded, “Sure kid. Hit me with your best shot.” 

“It’s about Harley.” 

“Kid,” Mr. Stark put down his pencil and directed all attention to him, “If this is about you two’s little kiss on the roof, I don’t think I want to know.” 

Peter felt his cheeks heat up as he sputtered, “What? I- You know about that?” 

“Do you really think that I don’t have security cameras in every inch of this building?” 

“Okay so,” Peter drew in a breath, ignoring how Mr. Stark was laughing at him, “It’s not about the kiss necessarily.” 

“Oh?” Harley still felt like Mr. Stark was mocking him as his eyebrow quirked up, “Then what’s it about?” 

“His birthday is coming up, and, well,” Peter felt himself fidget, “I want to do something for him.” 

Mr. Stark was definitely mocking him, Peter concluded, as he grinned wide, “Like what?” 

“Um, you know,” Peter sighed, looking at his hands, “Like dinner and an arcade or something.” 

“Like a date?” 

“No!”  _ Yes.  _

Mr. Stark let out a laugh and Peter frowned at him, pouting, “Not a date. Ned and MJ will be there too.”

“Listen kid,” Mr. Stark stepped towards him, putting a hand on his shoulder, “Everybody but Harley knows that you have the biggest crush on him. And everyone but you can tell that you like him. Go for it, Peter."

Peter nodded, “Yeah, okay.” 

“But listen,” Mr. Stark stopped grinning, his eyes serious, “If you ever break my son’s heart for good, I will destroy you.” 

“Noted,” Peter gulped, as Mr. Stark stepped away.

Mr. Stark was back at his work desk, “And by the way, you coming to the roof every night since Harley ran out on you is sweet, but please get some sleep.” 

Peter squeaked loudly, “That’s private!” 

“No,” Mr. Stark grinned at him, “It’s just pathetic.” 

“It is not!” 

Mr. Stark snorted, “You crying in the Spider-Man suit on the roof of the tower is pretty pathetic, Peter.” 

“Mr. Stark,” Peter squealed, embarrassment burning through his face, “Shut up!” 

Harley walked into the lab, snorting, “Woah, that’s a new one Peter. Telling your elders to shut up? Tsk Tsk.”

Petter banged his head on the desk, “You guys are rude and I’m not having a fun time.”  
  


 

_ Two Weeks Until the Incident  _

_ Two Weeks Until Harley’s birthday _

 

Peter: 

Hey, Abbie?

 

Abbie:

who tf is this

 

Peter:

Peter Parker. 

 

Abbie: 

oh yeaaaahhhh

harleys friend right

 

Peter: 

Yeah, sorry for texting you out of the blue. 

I got your number from Tony, and I have a question about your brother.

 

Abbie: 

Np

i do have a question 4 u tho b4 you ask anything

 

Peter: 

Okay shoot?

 

Abbie: 

Ur the Spider-Man bitch right

 

Peter:

Um, no.

 

Abbie: 

ur  not slick

u shouldnt take ur mask off on the tower roof

u never know who could be up there

Peter: 

Oh my god. 

You can’t tell anyone. 

 

Abbie: 

rlly???????

no shite

Peter: 

Language, you know Pepper doesn’t like it when you curse

 

Abbie: 

if you snitch on me ill tell Harley

 

Peter: 

K so you have all the power here. 

 

Abbie: 

literally 

i always have the power

 

Peter: 

Yeah, it seems so. 

Either way, I was wondering if you had any idea about 

what Harley would want to do for his birthday?

 

Abbie:

didnt u like 

Break my brothers heart

 

Peter: 

Not intentionally

 

Abbie: 

k but u dont deny breaking my bros heart

 

Peter: 

No I do deny it because I really like him.

 

Abbie:

did you or did you not ditch my brother at the dance

 

Peter: 

I did, but it was because of superhero reasons.

 

Abbie: 

doesnt matter 

did you or did you not make my brother cry by ditching him

 

Peter: 

No!

 

Abbie: 

cough cough 

i smell bullshit

 

Peter: 

Okay, I did make him cry. 

But I really didn’t mean too. 

 

Abbie:

read the pervious statement parker

also!!! 

did you or did you not kiss my brother and then leave him

 

Peter: 

Hold on, that one I actually didn’t do. 

Also, why do you know that??

 

Abbie: 

I know all. 

And my brother isnt as slick as he thinks

he likes to act like he doesnt care

but i know how he is and who he cares about

and i may be ten but like 

even i can see that you two are in love

 

Peter: 

Yeah.....

 

Abbie:

but also

please remeber 

i know where harley hides his potato guns

and let me say 

no ammount of fast reflexes will stop them from hitting you

 

Peter: 

Noted.

 

Abbie: 

k so now that ive reminded u of ur impending doom

what do you need help with

 

Peter: 

Me, Ned, and MJ are going to take Harley to an arcade

But Me and ned wanna know what you think we should get Harley

Plus… I wanted to ask you how you think Harley would wanna be asked out

Since you two are close I figured you might know what he would want 

 

Abbie:

i mean

as someone who has ½ of a brain 

i think hed juust be happy u were asking him out 

as for the gift 

u should get him smth u make 

he likes hand made stuff

it makes him feel special 

 

Peter: 

Like a braclet?

 

Abbie: 

Oh yeah thats perf

 

Peter:    
Okay

Thank you

 

Abbie:

NP

 

Peter: 

Also, don’t curse, you’re ten 

 

Abbie: 

die 

 

 

_ One Week Until the Incident _

_ One Week Until Harley’s birthday _

 

 

Peter yawned, half way asleep, “Harley, its two am.” 

“You, sir,” Harley seemed way more awake than Peter could ever dream of being, “need to develop a sense of adventure.” 

“Oh really?” Peter snorted, rubbing away the tiredness in his eyes.

He glanced at Harley, scanning over him. His hair was messier than usual, falling in his eyes and bringing attention to the dark hazel. Even though Harley looked exhausted, the bags under his eyes prominent and strong, Peter could get lost in those eyes. And his freckles. Lord his freckles were everywhere. Harley’s lips moved, and Peter’s eyes were drawn to them. 

Harley had kissed him. Well, he had kissed Spider-Man. And Spider-Man was him. He was Spider-Man. And Harley had kissed him. Except not really, kind of. He had said he liked Peter Parker, but then had kissed Spider-Man, and it was confusing. It made his head spin. Not to factor in Harley’s Peter. The thing that got Peter was him. Him who? Yes, him. 

Harley snapped his fingers in front of his eyes, “Earth to Peter, Earth to Peter?” 

“Oh,” Peter glanced away from him with wide eyes, feeling his face flush, “What was that?” 

“I asked if you wanted to watch Megamind, Shrek, or the Bee Movie?”

“Pfft,” Peter snorted at his friend, “All of them.” 

Harley grinned at him, drawing Peter’s attention back to his mouth, “You read my mind, Parker, you read my mind. Think you can handle all of them?” 

“That much power in one sitting? Obviously.”

“I don’t know about that,” Harley’s grin widened, “You’re a bit behind on your meme culture.” 

“Those are fighting words!” 

“Uh doy.” 

Peter rolled his eyes, a smile etched onto his face, “Okay then what do you think I can handle, oh great wise Harley the meme master.” 

“For you?” Peter nodded, so Harley continued with a smile, “The Notebook.” 

Peter stared at Harley with wide eyes before letting out a deep laugh, “That’s one of my favorite movies to be honest.” 

“Oh my god,” Harley smiled at him, “You’re so iconic.” 

Peter rolled his eyes again, “I try.” 

“Either way,” Harley drawled at him, “Do you actually wanna watch it or no?” 

“Yeah.” 

Harley walked to the other side of the lab, to the TV, muttering something to Friday probably. Peter had to admit, there was something soft about this. The light of two AM was soft and Harley seemed to glow in it. He was embedded around the technology of the lab and he looked so comfortable, softly debating with Friday on whether it was the appropriate time to watch a movie. He looked so relaxed, like a cat who had gotten the canary and the milk. Peter thought he looked beautiful. 

Cause this was when Harley was most beautiful. When he was in his element of a lab and it’s machines and doing fuck what. Whether he was building something, designing something, or arguing with an A.I., he always has this air about him. Harley was amazing. 

He turned to him, “Are you grabbing the blankets or what?” 

“Um, only if I get to have the iron Man blanket,” Peter stood, walking towards the bench where they kept the blankets. He heard Harley snort something that sounded like ‘in your dreams’ but he ignored it, grabbing the fluffy blankets from their pile. 

He made his way over to the couch, “We can share the iron man blanket.” 

“Okay,” Harley said softly, grinning at him with his crooked smile, “I have to warn you though, I hog the blanket.”  

“Honestly I wouldn’t expect anything less.” Peter set up the pillows, sitting back to set up more blankets. Harley made a move to sit next to him, and he scooted over. 

Harley smiled at him, “Ready to watch the sappiest movie in the entire world?” 

“Yeah,” Peter breathed, “I am.” 

“Good.” 

Both of them knew the movie by heart, knew it with every fiber of their souls. Harley didn’t ask why he knew all the lines. He didn’t ask why Harley could hum the score. They just sat there, legs pressed together on the couch, so impossibly close to each other. 

“I want a love like that,” Harley’s voice was silent, not breaking the quiet of the ending scenes of the movie. 

Peter didn’t turn to him, but his hand found the top of Harley’s only separated by a blanket, “I want one like that too.” 

They watched the scene in near silence, as Harley took his hand out of the blanket and gently laced his fingers with Peters. He prayed Harley couldn't hear his heart beating, because it was so loud in his own ears. It wasn’t quite enough to cover Harley’s voice though. 

Still unusually quiet for Harley, still soft, still so much like him, “Do you like anyone Peter?” 

His eyes flicked to Peter, who was already staring at him, and in a voice of softness matching Harleys, he spoke, “Yeah. Yeah I do.”   
  
  
  


_ Three Hours Until the Incident  _

_ Harley’s birthday _

 

Harley woke up to see Michelle fucking Jones standing over him, “Dude wake up and get dressed. It's like four why are you still asleep?” 

“What..?” Harley sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, looking at his friends, “What the fuck are you three doing here?” 

“Guess what day it is?” 

Harley blinked at them, slipping out of bed, “Sunday?” 

“No you idiot,” Ned snorted, “It's your birthday?” 

“Oh shit really?” 

“Dude,” Peter wasn’t looking at Harley. Harley felt a sweet satisfaction with the realization it was probably the booty shorts he slept in that made Peter so distracted, “How do you not even remember your own birthday?” 

“Been busy,” Harley shrugged, heading to the closet, “That still doesn’t explain why you’re here…” 

“Dude, you are,” Ned face palmed, “like, so so dumb.” 

“I am not,” he slipped into his closet, pulling off his pajamas and slipping on regular clothes, “Just answer the question.”

“We rented out an arcade and we’re gonna hang.” 

Harley laughed, “You rented out an arcade?” 

“Mr. Stark rented out an arcade.” 

“See that sounds more like it,” Harley got out of the closet. 

MJ raised an eyebrow, looking at his shirt, “Nice Shirt.” 

“Thanks,” Harley grinned at them, “I made it myself.” 

“Hear that Peter,” Ned elbowed him, “Harley made it himself.” 

“Um, yeah,” Peter was stuttering, “I didn’t know you made Spider-Man merch.” 

“Normally I don’t, but I like this,” He turned around presenting the back which read ‘the things id let spider-man do to me.’ Mj let out a laugh, and he grinned, “But unfortunately for you, its New York in winter so I’m gonna be wearing my jacket over this beautiful shirt.” 

“Alright, alright, we get it,” Ned made a gesture towards the door, “Now come on. I need to beat you nerds at Dance Dance Revolution.”   
  
  


The arcade was probably the most niche arcade ever. Small and kind of old, it felt like an 80’s movie set. The games were fantastic though, everything from Pac-Man, to a few VR games. Harley was having a blast, wheezing as Peter and Ned made fools of themselves trying to beat each other out in the video games. Surprisingly, MJ was the one beating them at everything. 

Laser tag was also an interesting experience. For starters, Harley had not known that Peter could do a backflip, but he knew it after choosing to be on the opposite team. For seconds, he never realized that Mj was a bloodthirsty monster who wanted more than anything to kick Ned and Peter’s ass. And for thirds, he actually already knew this one, but still, he learnt that Ned talked big game but had literally no skill in the world of laser tag. Six games. All ties. 

Dance Dance Revolution was another story. Ned, true to his word, was a DDR legend. Harley couldn’t keep up with the beat of the music, and Ned was able to crush him easily. Peter fell three steps in, flat on his face. Mj on the other hand was a contender that had Ned sweating, and Harley was once again in complete shock at the fact that MJ was a competitive and Badass Bitch. 

In short, he was pretty sure it was the best birthday ever.  
  


 

By the time they sat down to actually eat, Harley was wheezing with laughter, “Oh my god, y’all are awful.” 

“Lets play a drinking game,” MJ looked at the other two boys, “Let's take a shot every time Harley says y’all.” 

“We’d have alcohol poisoning by the end of the night,” Ned pointed out to his friends, shoving a slice of the worst pizza in the world in his mouth. 

Peter grinned, laughing at Harley’s offended expression, “Would you two stop being mean to the birthday boy?” 

“Yeah!” 

MJ rolled her eyes, “Tell the birthday boy that he needs to not be country.”

“I was born and raised in Tennessee,” Harley picked up a slice of pineapple pizza, “I can literally not not be country.” 

“Bitch.” 

“Hoe.” 

“Says the slut,” MJ snorted. 

Peter turned to her, “Harley isn’t a slut!”

“Peter, how many times do I need to remind you,” Harley smirked at him, winking, “I’m a huge slut.” 

Peter’s face went red and he seemed to trip on his speech. Ned laughed, “Dude, didn’t you once say you knew every lap dance scene from Magic Mike?” 

“Yeah,” MJ grinned, a mischievous glint in her eyes, “I doubt he actually does.” 

Harley scoffed at them, “Y’all doubt me?” 

“Take a shot,” Mj muttered, before returning her attention to Harley, “Yeah, I doubt you.” 

“Yeah, I don’t think you know them either,” Peter spoke up, the blush on his face still ever present. 

“Bet money.” 

“Five dollars.”   
  
“You’re on,” He grinned at her, “You volunteering?” 

“No, I’m gay and so are you,” Mj pointed at Peter, “Peter will do it.” 

“I’ll do what now?"

Harley stood, dragging the chair he was sitting on to the middle of the room, “On the chair Parker.” 

“Okay but why?” Peter obeyed, despite his confused tone. 

“You’re getting a lap dance,” MJ rolled her eyes, “Because someone needs to so Harley, the dumb slut, can prove he can give the one from Magic Mike.” 

“Okay- wait what?” 

“Just stay on the chair, Parker.”

  
  


Peter’s face was red, and Harley could feel his heart beat from where their chests were pushed together as he moved as carefully as he could. He remembered the magic mike dance well, and he was not about to fucking chicken, just because MJ had dragged Peter fucking Parker into a conversation they had weeks ago. He couldn't just let his feelings get in the way of being a flirty bitch. 

Harley wrapped a leg around the chair dipping back to make finger guns at MJ who seemed like she was impressed. Ned had disappeared, probably ditching to get some more food. He pulled himself forward, making sure to grind down slightly on him. Peter gulped audibly, his hands gripping the chair, knuckles white. Harley exhaled. 

The song changed, something familiar but also… he paused. This was that one Hey Violet song that he used to vibe too. He grinned, feeling his body relax as he realized that this was his moment and his chance. After all, this was exactly what lovers did. 

He swung his hips, getting off Peter’s lap, and on his knees, like he had seen in the movie so many times, running his hands down his thighs, before kicking back and standing up. He dragged his fingers up Peter’s chest, before circling the chair, bringing his fingertips to the back of his neck. He lowered himself pushing his chest against Peter’s back. It would probably have worked better if he had boobs, but he trailed a hand over Peter’s chest. 

He spun towards him, straddling again like the movie showed. He leaned back, extending his hand to touch the floor, using all of the strength in his legs to keep him hooked around Peter. MJ was no longer standing there, but Harley couldn’t find it in himself to care or to stop. He leaned back towards Peter, grinding down as he leaned forward letting his breath ghost over his neck. Peter’s hands left the chair, gripping Harley’s hips instead. He grinned, lightly kissing Peter’s neck. 

Harley had no doubt in his mind that Peter was interested, now. While he wasn’t sure if it was the lap dance or if it was Harley, he could tell that Peter definitely wanted him. Definitely thought he was hot. Probably more, if the constant movie nights, and soft cuddling where anything to go by. He let his lips drag on Peter’s neck as his grip on his waist grew stronger, his fingers brushing the skin beneath his shirt. 

He pulled back resting his forehead on Peter’s, moving his hips slowly against Peter’s. His hands were brushing beneath Harley’s shirt and the contact made Harley buzz. He grinned, chuckling, “I told y’all I could dance like Magic Mike.” 

Peter’s face was red, “Never doubted you.” 

“Really?” Harley practically purred, “If I recall, you said there was no way that I could do it.” 

“Did I?” Peter’s hands were inching higher, and Harley could feel the heat of his hands again his stomach. 

Harley nodded, his grin fading, “You did.” 

They stayed there, in silence, with Harley on Peter’s lap and Peter’s hands in Harley’s shirt looking into each others eyes. They inched closer, and closer, their mouths centimeters apart. A sound, sounding like a creak in a step, and just like that, Peter yeeted Harley off the chair, quickly removing his hands and throwing him off his lap. 

Harley landed on the ground with a thud “Ouch! What the fuck Peter?”

“Sorry, sorry,” Peter brought his legs up, hugging his les to his chest, “I thought someone was coming.” 

“So?” 

“So? Harley,” Peter’s voice went up a pitch, “If anyone had seen that-” 

“Seen what? That you were about to-”

“That you were straddeling me in a sexual position with my hands up your shirt?!” 

“What does that matter-”

“It just does!” 

“That makes no sense,” Harley snapped standing up, running a hand through his hair, “So what if someone sees us having a moment?!” 

Peter rolled his eyes, standing up as well snapping in annoyance, “Who says we were having a moment?!”

“Oh fuck you,” Harley snorted, stepping towards him, “Like you weren't into it.” 

“Like I was into something that you and Mj coerced me into doing?!” 

Harley scoffed, shaking his head, “You fucking forget I was on your lap. I could tell exactly how into it you are.” 

“That's-” Peter’s face was redder than a tomato, “That's completely not the point!” 

“So what is the point?!” 

“The point is that we could have been seen!”   
  
“Why would that even matter?!” 

“Because they would assume we were dating!” 

“Why is that so bad?!” 

“Its not!” 

“Then why the fuck are we standing here screaming at each other?!” 

“Because you kissed Spider-Man!” 

“Why does that matter?!”  
  
“It just does!” 

“God Parker," Harley snapped at him, running a hand through his hair, “Sometimes I think you don’t even fucking like me!” 

“Oh fuck off,” Peter pointed at him, “You know that's not true!” 

“Oh really?!” 

“Yeah! Of course I like you! You’re my best friend!” 

Harley blinked hard and stepped back, “So then what the fuck was all that flirting?” 

Peter stayed quiet, and Harley could feel himself start to shake, “Was all of that fucking fake? Did you mean fucking any of it? Did you ever actually fucking like me? Why the fuck would you cuddle with me watching romance movies if i was just your fucking best friend?! Why the fuck were you feeling me up if i was just a friend?!”

Peter wasn’t saying anything, just staring at Harley. Harley was panting, out of breath from the small angry rant. They stood there in the silence and Harley couldn’t take it, “Fuck you Peter.” 

He stormed away, towards the door of the arcade. He didn’t look to see if Peter was following, but as he felt his heart sink away into his stomach he knew he wasn’t.  
  


 

_ The Incident occurs _

_ Harley’s birthday _

 

 

Harley made it to the door, braving the raging thunderstorm that had started. He couldn’t breath, he was so angry. He was so tired. He felt like he had been lead on, and god it fucking hurt. What were all those moments this month if not Peter finally feeling the same way? Fuck, Harley was looking too deep into this. God he was angry. He was so fucking angry. 

Water was pounding against his skin but he just kept walking away from the arcade. Peter followed him out, “Harley! Wait!” 

“No!” Harley turned on him, face hot, “No! I won’t fuckin’ wait for you to make up your mind Peter!” 

“My mind’s been made up! For a long time, Harley, come on!” 

Harley scoffed, throwing his hands out, motioning for Peter to stop stepping towards him, “Then what is it Peter?! Do you fuckin’ like me?! Do you fuckin’ wanna date me?! Make up your fucking mind Parker! Because I’m not here for your fucking games!” 

“Harley-” 

“Fuck off!” 

He was crying, and he was so grateful to the rain, “You’re fucking driving me insane Peter, god dammit!” 

He was about to scream more, about to flail, scream and curse at Peter. He was so fucking angry, he was seething. He was hurt. God he was so fucking hurt. 

That's when the hands grabbed him, jerking him into the back of a van, his voice catching on a scream. 

He made eye contact with Peter, who was running towards them, eyes wide with panic.

The van doors closed, and Harley jerked as the car moved forward. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you to Emrysczerny on tumblr for helping me beta read! You can hit me up on tumblr at Lovelylangst. 
> 
> Check out Peter and Harley's blogs! 
> 
> And the Parkner playlist:  
> https://open.spotify.com/user/hsvsusvslv/playlist/4RHPhJ5minJk5cRcgiing2?si=PjWY8XOLRSWSx_yfBYFxvg
> 
> also, thank you to the Harley Keener discord, for no particular reason but yalla re cool.


	8. Sweet Dream (Are Made Of These) by Eurythmics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley got kidnapped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sbhfjalsvfhdslvfhsl This was wild to write
> 
> For those who know me, y'all know that physical violence is not my strongest writing point. For those who don' this is a decent attempt at me writing violence. It reads kinda... eh, and its kind of short, but I think that it suits the tone and style I was going for. This is the only chapter in normal chapter format btw. I hope y'all like that. Having said that, Trgger Warning!! 
> 
> This chapter has:   
> Graphic depictions of violence  
> Kidnap  
> Stabbing
> 
> I hope y'all like it.

Harley let out a strangled cry as the asshole in the black mask leered at him. The masked man’s hands made a grab to his hair, growling at him, “This the right fuckin kid?” 

“Yeah,” The man on the left nodded, “That’s the Stark kid.” 

“Fuck yeah,” the fist in his hair tightened, “You realize we’re gonna get loaded from this, right?” 

“I know.” 

“Y’all are so fucking dumb,” Harley spat, glaring, “Y’all realize you just kidnapped the son of Iron Man right? You know he’s gonna fucking kill you two, right?” 

“He won’t,” The man holding his hair jerked his hand, forcing Harley’s head back. Harley ignored the action, trying to force himself to stay calm despite the feeling that his throat was slowly closing up on him. 

The man on the left laughed, heartly, like he enjoyed seeing Harley get messed with, “Not if he wants his son back alive, he won’t.” 

Harley blinked, and cursed under his breath. If Tony even suspected for even a second that they would actually kill him, he wouldn’t even try. These guys knew how Tony thought. Well maybe they just knew how every parent thought. If Harley was gonna get out of this, he needed to figure it out himself. 

“Stop in the next alley,” The man on the left- Harley was pretty sure he was the asshole running this show- demanded. The driver made a sharp turn, throwing the doors of the van back open, before stopping. The guy holding his head released him, only to grab is arm and throw him back at the brick walls of the alley. 

Harley landed with a sickening thud, but he wasn’t about to let this good opportunity go to waste. He sprung to his feet, running towards the end of the alley way trying his hardest to make it there, his legs burning with the effort, but he couldn't stop. He needed to get out of there, he needed to get out of there, he needed to get out of there. Someone grabbed his hoodie. He choked. 

He fell to the floor, hitting the back of his head as he wheezed, the feeling of being winded hitting him hard. He gasped out a breath, just to try to get his bearings but the feeling of his jacket collar going against his neck as he ran full speed was one he wasn’t sure he would ever forget. He coughed, spluttering as the man who had grabbed his hoodie, started to pull him. His shirt rode up and he felt the sting of concrete being dragged against his skin, and he cursed, “Let go of me-” 

“I will admit,” The man who was in charge’s voice came from behind him, and he circled towards Harley, crouching down so he was parallel from his face, “You’ve got balls.”

“However,” The man tsked at him, standing up again, “You are not a man yet.” 

Harley knew the foot was coming before the impact hit. That didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt. Because it did. It hurt. It hurt when the foot came down on his chest, a sickening feeling of dread and pain overwhelmed his senses as the first kick ended and the second kick came down harder. He couldn’t breath, the sense of the air exiting his lungs was paralyzing him in place. 

He didn’t know what was happening. He didn’t know what was happening. Except he knew exactly what was happening, because he recognized the foot coming down on him. He tried curling in on himself, but he couldn’t manage. Whatever kind of shoe this guy was wearing, he obviously knew that he’d have to kick a kid. 

“Stop,” Harley couldn’t breathe, and instead of a command, it came out as a pathetic wheeze, something a dying animal would make, “Stop, please stop, stop, please, stop.” 

“Mmmmmm,” The guy kicking him raised his foot, considering it for a second. Harley curled in on himself at the opportunity, assuming he was just gonna keep kicking but it stopped. For a blissful second the kicking stopped, as the guy turned to his partner, “What do you think, Z?” 

“Kid deserves it,” Z grinned at him, “So I suggest you keep kicking. I’ll get something to bind his hands with, so he can’t get away.” 

The guy gave a thumbs up, and Harley muffled a shout as the foot came down even harder than before, a sickening sound ringing in his ears. He could taste blood in his mouth from the force of the foot hitting his body. He couldn’t breathe. Everything hurt. Everything hurt so badly. He couldn’t think. 

He was pulled off the ground with a groan, his jacket digging into his skin as ropes dug into his wrists. Z pushed him onto the wall, his head hitting the brick hard. He saw spots, his body aching in all sorts of pain. He was bleeding, somewhere under his clothes, but he wasn’t sure where. He wasn’t sure what was happening. He wasn’t sure this was happening. 

“You’re going to call Stark,” Harley almost missed the demand made by the boss. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears, and it must’ve showen, because the man repeated himself, “You’re going to call Stark.” 

Harley wanted to say no. 

Tony would panic, and when Tony panics it usually ended bad. As it was he would assume the worst and end up wounding himself more in his bid to save Harley. Flying the Iron Man suit with the amount of sleep that Tony had been getting was a disaster waiting to happen. All of the time and energy he had going to Rhodey’s legs, creating more things, and helping himself, were draining and even if he didn’t want to admit it, Harley could see it. Tony couldn’t handle seeing Harley hurt right now. He especially couldn’t handle fighting in the Iron Man suit, knowing one wrong move could kill his kid. 

More than anything though, a sickening part of him whispered that he could save himself. Tony had done it so many times. Tony has saved himself before. He could save himself.  He was Harley fucking Keener, and he could get himself out of this. He raised his head, the cold rain grounding him, “No.” 

He should’ve expected the punch to the gut, but he didn’t. He wheezed, choking on air again as another punch rolled into his stomach. Z growled at him, “What do you mean no?” 

Harley didn’t even get a chance to respond before the fist came back down on him, landing a solid blow to his cheek. In an instant he knew why the punches hurt so much, as a large gash found its way into Harley’s face. It must’ve been a ring of some sort, and damn did it hurt like a bitch. 

The boss gave a hand gesture and Z stopped, looking like he wanted more than anything to continue the bashing. The boss stepped towards him, raising Harley’s face to look at his cheek, “There’s a difference between bravery and being a fool, Stark. Learn the difference.” 

“Now,” He presses his finger into the cut, making Harley flinch back, “Let me ask you again, call Stark.” 

Harley hissed in pain, the guy’s fingernail digging into his cheek, “Let me get my phone.” 

“Where is it.” 

Harley shuffled against the wall, moving his hands to feel for where the phone was. He was hindered by the fact his hands were bound to each other, but in the end it didn’t even matter. His phone wasn’t on his body. He knew exactly where his phone was. On the table of the arcade where he had given a lap dance to Peter. Peter. Peter knew he was in trouble, there was no way in hell he hadn’t already called the police or Tony or someone. Harley relaxed internally. Help was on its way, and it was just a matter of time and staying alive. 

The boss looked annoyed, “Well? Where. Is. It.” 

“Well,” Harley lifted his head to the rain, trying to figure out a plan. His brain fired off words before he could fully think them through, “You see, fuck you.” 

“I’ve had enough of this,” Z grabbed Harley’s hair, yanking hard as he tossed Harley to the ground again, “I don’t care who this kid is, no one fucking talks to us like that.” 

Harley could feel the rain on his face. He was grateful for that. He was so grateful for the rain. Because even though his mouth tasted like blood, and he was sure he was bruising horribly, and maybe looked a little more than broken, he knew the rain was washing all of that away. The blood. The bruising. The pain. It was taking that away. 

He felt cold, because the rain was cold. But at least he was feeling. Feeling the rain as a kick landed on his jaw, his head pushing back against the pavement of the alley. Feeling the rain as his ribs cracked under the constant blows to his chest. Feeling the rain as he gasped out choked breaths because he wasn’t sure if he was breathing. He wasn’t really sure that he wasn’t breathing, either, he just didn’t know what he was doing. He felt like his body had given up on him completely. 

He wasn’t sure any of this was actually happening. He felt pain, like a fire consuming his body all over. But he felt the rain too. His senses were going into overdrive, or going numb. Harley really couldn’t tell. One of the men, Harley didn’t know who and couldn’t find it in himself to care, slammed their foot down on his ankle, and Harley let out a scream. Loud and piercing, because jesus fucking christ that hurt. And he wasn’t sure if this was actually happening or if he was hallucinating, but he didn’t care. All he knew is that it hurt. It hurt. God it hurt. 

And it wasn’t stopping. 

It didn’t stop when lightning flashed, illuminating the alley with a sickening crack that Harley thought was thunder but it might’ve been the sound of his wrist breaking in his own ears.  He wasn’t really sure. It didn’t stop, though, as the rain came down heavier, pelting all three of them so hard that his skin was stinging. Or maybe the stinging skin was from where one of the guys rings was catching on his skin. He wasn’t really sure. It didn’t stop when Harley saw the gleam of a blade in the shine of the lightning. 

Then it stopped, only for him to be forced onto his feet. Harley couldn’t breath, his lungs felt like they were on the verge of collapse. His ankle was burning and he couldn’t feel his left wrist or his hand. He couldn’t see, his vision was spotting. His head was spinning. The thought they said something but he couldn’t hear them over the pain. He couldn’t. 

They seemingly didn’t like the fact that he didn’t answer- or maybe he did answer and he just couldn’t tell what his own voice was, or what he was saying- because suddenly that silver blade that looked like it was glowing in the flashes of light was buried deep in his gut. Harley was pretty sure he was screaming, but he couldn’t tell. 

The men jerked away from him, and Harley sank to the ground. 

Spider-Man stood in front of them, snapping a web out to grab one guy before throwing him to the other side of the alley.

He turned to the other, who charged at him. He seemed to be expecting it though, as he tore his body to the side, dodging the punch. He grabbed the guys arm, tossing him to the floor, his knee jutting into the guys chest. Harley wanted to call out for him to turn around because the other guy was charging, but he couldn’t think straight. He was pretty sure he was going into some sort of shock. 

He must’ve said something, enough for Spider-Man too look back at the guy he originally threw and glare. He slung a web towards him, pulling him towards him, stepping out of the way to make sure that they were together. He said something, and Harley couldn’t make it out. 

He couldn’t make out anything. 

He knew what Spider-Man did next though, mainly because he had designed the specific web blaster. The electric web, the one that electrocuted the things it touched. Made to dismantle weapons that couldn’t be touched, and had to be short circuited. He shot it at the two men, who might have screamed. Harley couldn’t tell. And he wasn’t sure he cared.

He was leaning against a brick wall, with the rain pooling on his face, mixing with the blood in his eyes. The world around him looked pink, the water diluting the red substance like it was a paint. His eyes were blurry, as Spider-Man got on his knees in front of him. Harley tried to focus on him. 

“...rley,” His voice was fuzzy in Harley’s ears, “Harley, I need you to help me.” 

“What?” Harley slurred, his voice sounding fake to his own ears. He still wasn’t sure what was happening. A part of him whispered that this was the first time they had seen each other since Harley ruined everything, and another part was whispering that he was dying. Harley ignored the latter, and his mind jumped to the former, “‘M sorry, Spider-Man.” 

Spider-Man leaned in a little more, his hands inching closer to Harley. Harley flinched, not meaning too. He raised his wrists and Spider-Man untied him, then paused, “You have nothing to be sorry for, Harley.” 

“But I kissed you.” 

“Harley,” Spider-Man sounded like he was panicking, “You were just beaten and all you can think about is how you kissed me?” 

Harley shrugged, the movement making him hiss in pain. His vision swam again, and his voice was coming out in quick gasps, “You deserved to know I was sorry.” 

“Harley, oh god,” His voice was tight and his eyes were directed at the knife still lodged in Harley’s gut, “You were stabbed.” 

“Oh. Yeah.” 

He inched closer, “I’m gonna pick you up, okay?” 

“Why?” Harley’s voice sounded drowsy in his own ear, and he turned his face to the sky. The rain was nice. 

“Because I need to take you to the hospital.” 

“No,” Harley was still looking up, letting the rain wash away all the blood on his face, “No hospitals.” 

“Harley-” 

“Can I tell you something?” 

“Of course, but Harley, we need too-” 

“You were the first kiss I actually cared about,” Harley breathed, his voice coming out weak in his own head. He wasn’t sure what he was doing, only that it was better than what he had been doing. So he kept babbling, “You were the first kiss I actually cared about, isn’t that wild- and Peter- god- I’ll miss my Peter- because he was the first guy I felt like was good to me- and Peter Parker oh god, I didn’t mean to yell at him-” 

“He knows that,” Spider-Man shushed him, eyes wide with what Harley presumed to be panc, “He knows that, but you won’t have to miss them because you’re going to the hospital and you’ll be okay. You’ll be okay, Harley.” 

“-I really really like him,” Harley looked at Spider-Man, his head rushing, “And I never- I never got to tell him that-” 

“He knows Harley,” Spider-Man’s voice was tight and his hands were shaking, “I know, Harley. Please let me get you to a hospital.” 

“Of course you know,” Harley laughed his thoughts a little everywhere, “I told you about him- remember? Right before- Right before I kissed you.”

Harley coughed, the taste a startling metallic coming out of his throat. He could tell that the blood was coating the back of his teeth, probably escaping his mouth. He closed his eyes, “You have to tell- you have to tell Abbie I love her.”

“Harley-” 

“She needs to- she needs to know- that I- that I love her,” Harley coughed again, harder this time. More blood escaped his lips, “She needs to know- you have to tell her.” 

“Harley,” Spider-Man was begging, inching closer, grabbing his right hand, “I need to get you to a hospital!” 

“No- no hospitals- please, no hospitals.” 

“Fuck, Harley, please!” 

“I don’t- I don’t wanna die in a hospital- please.” 

“Harley, Harley you can’t die,” Spider-Man was crying, under the mask. Harley wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did, “Harley, I can’t- you’re not gonna die, we’re gonna get you to a hospital and you won’t die.”

“I don’t want to die in a hospital. Please.”

“Harley,” He said his name like a sob, and his hands moved to take his mask off, “Harley, please.” 

Harley froze. Before him was Peter Parker sobbing, eyes red with tears. His breath hitched, and he was bawling, hands clutching Harley’, “Fuck- Harley- you’re my best friend, please, please, I love you- you can’t die- you need to go to the hospital- fuck I can’t lose you Mecha! I can’t fucking lose you Harley!”    


If Harley thought that he had been baffled before, he wasn’t sure what was happening now. 

His mind was spinning. 

His mind was actually spinning. 

Because Peter Parker wasn’t Spider-Man. He had ruled out Peter Parker immediately. Peter Parker wasn’t Spider-Man. And he was his Peter. He had always thought that he wasn’t Peter Parker because they were different. This couldn’t be happening. This wasn’t happening. 

He pushed up the wall, forcing himself to stand, “Oh my god.” 

Peter couldn’t be Peter Parker. Peter couldn’t because that meant that Peter had ditched him after he had said he hated him. Harley couldn’t breath, his lungs felt like they were burning. In his vision he could see Peter stand up. He couldn’t breath. Peter was his Peter. Peter knew everything about him. Peter had ditched him. 

His head shook, “You can't be my Peter.” 

He was shaking. His whole body was shaking. This wasn’t okay. None of this was okay. His peter had cut off almost all ties with him. And this whole time it was Peter Parker, the boy he was falling in love with, “You can’t- You’re not. You cant- you can’t be Spider-Man.” 

But it would make sense. How many times had he and Peter talked about his day and he thought it sounded familiar. How many times had he let himself consider that it could be him, though. The thought never even crossed his mind. The thought genuinely never crossed his mind. 

“You can’t- you,” Harley’s tongue felt heavy, “Fuck, you are my Peter.” 

His head was reeling and he took a step away from Peter, who was quick to step towards him. His vision was swimming. 

Peter Parker was Spider-Man. Of course he was Spider-Man. Looking back at it, it made so so so much sense. He was so dumb. God he was so dumb. Because Peter Parker was so obviously Spider-Man. They were both so  _ good _ . They were both so  _ smart _ . And they both broke Harley’s heart. 

Peter Parker broke Harley’s heart. 

He couldn’t breathe. 

He couldn’t breathe. 

“You- fuck,” Harley’s vision was going black as he took a step away from Peter, hugging the wall of the alley, the rain making him pretty sure he was going to fall, “You are Spider-Man.” 

Peter was still crying as he nodded, and Harley knew. Harley knew. This was the boy he was in love with. This was the boy who had stopped talking to him when he had named dropped him because he had figured out who Harley was. This was the boy who then proceeded to not say anything about it to him. This was the boy who he had talked to about it, and yet, this was the boy that didn't change it. This was the boy who had taken on the job of a hero and befriended him once again on a different side. This was the boy he had confessed to liking, and kissed, and who didn’t respond. This was the boy that acted like nothing had changed. This was the boy he was in love with. 

He was  _ Spider-Man _ . He was  _ his Peter _ . He was  _ Peter Parker. _

His hands shook, and he pushed farther away, his vision blacking completely. 

He collapsed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please be nice in the comments, this chap is wild. A big thanks as always to Emrysczerny for helping me with this fic! Make sure to check out Harley and Peter's blogs (links are in earlier chapters) and a small little thank you to the Harley keener discord because everyone there is so nice. Also before anyone says it, Peter did not murder the guys, the muttering part from before was him telling karen to tone down the wattage.
> 
> Also, if you didn't notice, I changed the chapter titles to be the songs in the Parkner Playlist. Why? Idk, it was fun? 
> 
> Here's that playlist, btw:   
> https://open.spotify.com/user/hsvsusvslv/playlist/4RHPhJ5minJk5cRcgiing2?si=0dL1GfH6SWa1UZYW_ecIMQ


	9. You Are In Love by Taylor Swift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their shoulders brush. No proof, one touch. He felt enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god. Oh my god. This chapter is about 10,700 words. I'm... Y'all I hope you guys like it. I tried really hard to make it the best i could. Also, tw, theres a mentioning of Harley flatlinning but considering the length of this chat y'all all know he lived bitch
> 
> This is the last official chapter. Chapter ten is the epilouge and is defiently worth the read!! 
> 
> Also hey, if any of y'all didn't know this is part of a series, so there will be more content in this universe after this fic is over!!

_ A week before the kiss _

 

 

Harley’s eyes snapped open, the white roof of a hospital greeting him. Everything hurt. He wasn’t sure what was happening, or why he was in the hospital, only that it really really hurt. He struggled to sit up, scanning the room. Abbie was in a chair that had been pulled by his bed. Pepper and Tony were curled up in a chair by the window. Rhodey’s bag was on a third chair, but Harley didn’t see him. 

He hissed in pain as he sat up farther. It hit him. The kidnapping. The beating. The pain.  _ Peter _ . 

Peter Parker was Spider-Man. Peter Parker was also his Peter. A sinking feeling rang through his gut, and he knew it was more than the memory of the knife in it. He had spilled his gut to Peter about Peter more than a few times. And Peter had just stayed quiet. He hadn’t said anything. He had thought that maybe Peter had liked him. But… he had known how Harley felt and hadn’t done anything about it. Why?

Why wouldn’t he just make a move? 

Harley blinked hard as Rhodey walked in the room, his leg braces working beautifully. He smiled at Harley, his eyes tired, “Hey kid. Nice to see you up.”  

“How long,” Harley cleared his throat, “How long have I been out?” 

“A while,” Rhodey admitted, shrugging. He pulled his chair next to Harley’s bed, “About a week.” 

“Oh.” 

Rhodey nodded at him, “You were in and out of consciousness for a long time.”

“Oh.” 

“Yeah,” Rhodey’s voice was soft, and his eyes were full of emotion, “When you first came in, we were losing you.” 

Harley looked at him with wide eyes, “I was dying?” 

Rhodey nodded, “If Peter hadn’t brought you in when he did, you would have been dead.” 

“Peter…” Harley blinked hard again, “Did you know?” 

“About him being Spider-Man?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Yes,” Rhodey rested his elbows on his knees, leaning forward, “Me, Tony, and Pepper all knew. As far as I know the only other people that know are May Parker, Ned Leeds, Michelle Jones and Abbie.” 

“So everyone in my life but me,” Harley concluded, trying to put all the pieces together, “Knew that Peter, who I was in love with, was also Spider-Man, who I was in love with?” 

Rhodey shook his head in disbelief, “You’re ridiculous. Kid you got stabbed, went into shock, broke your ankle, and sprained your wrist. You’re lucky to be alive, let alone up after a week.  And, yet, all you can focus on is whether Peter likes you back.” 

Harley looked down, studying the bandage on his wrist, “That bad huh?” 

“Kid,” Rhodey sent him a look that he usually reserved for Tony. Fond but concerned and annoyed, “You know how it hurts every time you breath right now?” 

Harley nodded, and Rhodey continued, “You’ve got three broken ribs. It almost punctured a lung. You were so close to death, so many times in the first few hours of being here. You lost so much blood, Harley.”

“Oh.” 

“Yeah, oh,” Rhodey’s voice was soft, “God, I’m so glad you’re okay kid. We’ve all been tearing ourselves to bits with worry.” 

“Yeah,” Harley muttered, looking at his hands, “I’m sorry about that, by the way.” 

“What?” 

“Getting kidnapped,” Harley explained, not looking up, “And not being able to save myself, or call someone for help. I left my phone at the arcade and I just… couldn’t get myself out of there.” 

Rhodey’s voice was hard, and demanded his attention when he responded, “Harley. Never, ever, feel like you have to save yourself. If you can save yourself, then do it. But if you can’t, its okay to wait for help. We’ll always come. Even if Peter hadn’t been there, Tony and I- and yes, so would Peter- would’ve torn down this entire city looking for you. We’re just luck that Peter was there.” 

“Yeah,” Harley’s voice was heavy, his mind swimming with everything that had happened, “We’re really lucky.” 

“We are,” Rhodey shook his head, maybe clearing away some bad thoughts, “I’m sorry about this, kid. That this happened to you.” 

“Don’t be-” 

Rhodey’s voice was quiet, but still loud enough to have an impact, “No. We all should be sorry this happened to you. We knew it was a possibility, but we just assumed that it wouldn’t actually happen. Especially after what happened with Rogers and his team, and the public's sudden favor of Tony and you guys. You didn’t deserve this happening to you, and I swear to god, those guys are going to jail for as long as we can get them for.” 

Harley stayed quiet, and Rhodey took a deep breath, “But this was our fault. God, kid, we were so worried when Peter called us. All of us. And then when you came into the hospital- god. Kid, you were…. It was bad, Harley. It was really bad. I don’t think that’s something I’m ever going to be able to unsee. Seeing you like that… the only thing that was giving us even a little hope was that you were breathing. All that damage and somehow you were breathing.” 

“None of us have really left,” Rhodey had his head in his hands at this point, “Because none of us can imagine leaving you like you were. I’m not even sure that Abbie had left that chair since you came in, no matter what. When you flatlined she had to be dragged out of here- your sister loves you Harley. A lot. And Tony? Tony has been a wreck. I can’t even begin to describe it. Just… kid.” 

“I’m here, Rhodey,” Harley smiled at him, eyes filled with tears, “I’m alive. I’m breathing. You guys don’t need to worry anymore.”

“Yeah we do,” Rhodey shook his head, a smile on his face, “You clearly don’t know how family works because all of us will always be worried for you. Always.”

Harley snorted, “Yeah, yeah.” 

“Wait,” he paused, looking at Rhodey with a raised eyebrow, “Didn’t Spider-Man - er, Peter- use the electric webs I made him on those guys?” 

Rhodey nodded, his lips pursed, “He did. But he asked Karen to tone down the wattage so it wouldn’t kill them. Just hurt a lot.” 

“Oh.” 

“He’s been here every night you know,” Rhodey continued, “He refuses to come in. Just stays outside of the window, and watches you sleep. I think he’s been having nightmares about it.” 

“Oh,” Harley’s voice sounded like a whisper in his own ears, “Is he okay? I didn’t see if either of those assholes landed a hit on him.” 

“He’s okay,” Rhodey looked at him, a look that Harley couldn’t decipher, “He was shaken up. Nervous. Freaking out. But unharmed. He burned that suit though.” 

“He did what?!”  
  
“He said he couldn’t wear that suit knowing it had your blood on it,” Rhodey’s face was still unreadable, “He’s got others anyway.” 

“Yeah but…” 

“I think he needed to, kid,” Rhodey told him, softly. 

Harley looked down, “It really messed him up, huh?” 

“It messed all of us up.” 

“But I’m okay. I’m alive.”

Rhodey shook his head, locking eyes with him, “But you almost weren’t.” 

Harley stayed quiet, and Rhodey sighed, “Don’t get into your head. This isn’t your fault, Harley, so don’t blame yourself. It’s the guys who kidnapped you who are at fault for everything.” 

“Yeah,” Harley’s eyes found Abbie’s sleeping form, “Who were they anyway?” 

“Keaton and Zander Scotts,” Rhodey responded after a second of hesitation, “Brothers who were looking for a quick cash and hated Tony Stark. They’re huge in white nationalist communities, and are big fans of Captain America. Weren’t to pleased when Tony testified against him before the accords. Thought taking you was a good way to make a buck and show that Tony didn’t have as many supporters as he thought he did.” 

“Jesus,” Harley shook his head, “Thats fucked up.” 

“Yeah.” 

“They’re going to jail right?” 

Rhodey smiled at him, “Yeah. Yeah they are kiddo. You don’t have to worry about that.” 

“Okay,” Harley blinked hard, the tiredness in his bones finally catching him, “Hey Rhodey?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Do you think it will happen again?” 

“No,” His voice was firm, his shoulders back, “No one is going to let this happen again. I think I would rather die. I think Tony would rather die than let this happen again. You never have to worry about this again. This isn’t going to happen to you or Abbie ever again, okay?” 

“Okay.”

 

_ Five days before the kiss _

 

 

Two days after Harley officially woke up, he was released. His injuries were extensive but he wouldn’t let them keep him any longer. He was getting kind of restless if he was honest, he couldn’t stand being cooped in a hospital room. Besides, it was making him nervous.

He always got nervous when he was doing nothing. 

He supposed it was amplified because of everything that was happening. Him waking up. Him haven been kidnapped in the first place. Everyone’s reaction to that. 

Abbie wasn’t letting him out of her sight, but she wasn’t exactly talking to him. She spent most of the time daized, staring at him with wide eyes. Talking with her didn’t last for long, because she seemed to fixate on what was wrong with him. All of his injuries. She just seemed to be unable to focus on anything but the wounds that Harley was inflicted with.    
  
Pepper wasn’t much better. While she wasn’t hovering over him every second of the day, she certainly wasn’t not doing that. It was better than Abbie, though, because she was actually talking to him. Granted every other sentence would be asking him if he was okay. And she wouldn’t stop making sure that he wasn’t uncomfortable. To be honest, her worrying so much made him uncomfortable.

Rhodey was much better, but… on edge. It unnerved him a little bit. It was a little less intense than how he had acted when Tony had gotten back from Siberia, but it was kind of just as unnerving. He wasn’t helicoptering him, but Rhodey was doing things his own way. Tense and stiff, but relieved. 

Ned and MJ hadn’t been to see them but had been relieved as hell when he had texted the group chat with a ‘I lived bitch.’

Peter hadn’t responded. And he hadn’t been to see him. Harley thought that he saw him outside of the window sometimes. He was pretty sure he was just hallucinating. 

Tony, however, was the same story- just a different tone.  

He knew Tony. He knew how Tony processed and coped. He knew that Tony needed to build and create and do everything he could to avoid thinking about what could have been. He knew this all too well, because it was what he did. So he got it. He really did. 

That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt any less when Tony left for the lab the day that he had woken up. 

He stayed in the room with Harley for a few dozen hours, but then went to the lab. Harley didn’t know why, but he knew Tony. Tony needed to process. And if that meant blocking out Harley for a few days then that was okay. Even if it stung.   
  
Even if it kind of felt like he was at fault for this. 

At fault for everything. 

He sunk down on the couch, his laptop open in front of him. He was trying to write something- not his favorite thing to do, but considering he wasn’t allowed to touch his tools yet, it was better than nothing. He couldn’t focus though. 

The news was on, and he found his eyes trailed to it. Spider-Man was taking down some bank robbers. His heart felt heavy, and he knew why. 

“You miss him don’t you?” 

His head turned to Abbie, and he grinned at her, “No, obviously not.”

“Y’all aren’t smooth,” Abbie rolled her eyes, sitting down next to him, “Peter and you.”

“There’s nothing there.” 

“You’re lying,” Abbie shook her head, “You know we’re not supposed to lie. Mom hated it when we lied.” 

“Yeah,” Harley said slowly, looking at her.

She shrunk in on herself, “She told us honesty was policy.” 

Harley just nodded, his eyes looking at his sister. Abbie pulled her knees to her chest, “When you were in the hospital, you-” 

“Abbie,” Harley kept his voice soft, despite the pressure in his chest. It wasn’t that he didn’t talk about his mom. Because he had. It was just- they had never talked about it, “We really don’t have to talk about this.” 

“Then when will we?” Abbie’s voice was sharper than any ten year olds should be, “Then when will we talk about it?” 

“Do you want to talk about it.” 

She gave him a dead look, and he sighed, “Then let’s talk about it.” 

“Okay,” Abbie paused, her eyes flashing to the floor before looking up at Harley, “You looked like her. Lying there in the hospital. You looked like her Harley. Do you know how scared I was?” 

Harley stayed silent, so Abbie just continued, “I was terrified Harley- I just lost mom- I just-” 

“Abbie,” Harley moved his arm, pulling his little sister towards him, “You’re not gonna lose me. I’m not going anywhere.” 

“I’m not worried about that,” Abbie’s voice was tight, “Well… I am, but. I just. You looked like her Harley.” 

“We both look like her, Abbie.” 

“Yeah, but you looked like she did when she was dying Harley.” 

Harley winced, “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh,” Abbie’s voice was quieter, “I guess it just reminded me of her. Of her dying.” 

“Oh.” 

Abbie ran a hand through her hair, pushing up her glasses, “We don’t ever talk about her.” 

Harley stayed silent.   


“We don’t talk about her death,” Abbie shrunk into herself even more, “We don’t talk about how she was in life. We just… don’t talk about her.”

“I didn’t know you wanted to.” 

Abbie glanced at him, “She’s our  _ mother _ Harley. Of course I want to talk about her! I don’t want to  _ forget  _ her! I don’t want either of us to forget her!” 

Oh. Oooooh. Oooooooooooooooh. This is what this was about. 

He didn’t remember waking up before he had talked to Rhodey, but Pepper mentioned that the brief moments of consciousness had been… a lot. He hadn’t recognized Abbie, and he hadn’t recognized the photo of their mother on the bedside stand. He wasn’t sure he had recognized anyone, but Abbie was ten. Even with all of her wits and smarts, he knew that she was just a kid. She wouldn’t recognize when someone was too drugged up to recognize the people around them. 

A part of his heart broke, “Oh, Abbie…”

“I don’t want to forget her,” Her voice was trembling. 

“We won’t,” Harley assured her, voice soft, “We will never forget her. She’s our mother, Abbie. We would never ever forget her.” 

“You did.” Her voice broke, and she looked at him with wide scared eyes, “You forgot her, and me.”

“But I remembered,” Harley assured her again, “I will always remember you, Abbie. And I will always remember mom.” 

“But you forgot us.” 

“But I remembered you.” 

“But you forgot us.” 

“Abbie,” Harley sighed, “I remembered you. And I remembered mom. You don’t ever have to worry about me forgetting you, ever again. I swear Abbie.” 

“How do you know that?” 

Harley hesitates, “I don’t. But I do know this: you and mom are always going to be the number one in my heart, until the day I die. I will always care about y’all.” 

“Even when you run off and get married and have kids?” 

“Abbie,” Harley rolled his eyes, “That’s a long way from now. And who even says I’m going to get married? And even more, why does that mean that my little sister would suddenly be out of the picture? Common sis, we’re Keeners. We stick together.” 

“Um, First of all,” Abbie sniffled at her brother, grinning, “You and Peter are gonna sort your shit out and get married and have seven kids-“ 

“Oh my god,  _ no _ ,” Harley groaned, “I’m not having  _ seven  _ kids with Peter Parker! Ever! We’re not ever getting married because we’re not getting together!” 

“Bet.” 

“How much?” 

“Three potato guns,” Abbie paused, clearly thinking of something, “And you have to name your first born daughter after mom.”

Harley shot her a look, hoping it conveyed his ‘uh doy’ feeling, “Obviously.” 

“She’d like that I think,” Abbie’s voice was soft again, “Having a granddaughter named Macy who was both a super genius and had spider powers.” 

“I don’t think spider powers are inheritable.” 

Abbie rolled her eyes at him, “They should be. Imagine how funny it would be to have a baby who sticks to the ceiling.” 

“Oh my god,” Harley ran a hand over his face, the sudden image of what could be in his head. Him and peter having a kid. Macy May Parker. Macy May Parker-Keener. She would be perfect. Except she wouldn’t because she wouldn’t exist, because he and Peter were never going to date let alone be married with children, “Can we, like, drop this?”

“For now,” Abbie smiled at him, “Do you think mom would be proud of us?” 

“I think she is proud of us,” Harley smiled back, taking a note on just how much he and Abbie looked like their mom, “No matter if she’s dead or alive, I think she’s proud of us.” 

Abbie nodded, standing up with a stretch. She turned to him, her eyes narrowed, “So she would be proud of you not reaching out to the boy of your dreams?” 

“He’s not the boy of my dreams,” Harley grumbled, kind of offended that Abbie would use their mother against him, “he’s just a boy. There will be others.” 

“Maybe,” Abbie crossed her arms looking at him like he was an idiot, “But would they be as good as Peter Benjamin Parker?” 

Harley stayed silent, and Abbie sighed, unfolding her arms and going soft, “I’m ten and even I can tell that you two are each other’s end game.” 

“How do you know that?” 

“Because I’ve seen how Tony and Pepper look at each other,” Abbie’s voice was quiet, like she wasn’t just pulling the rug from under Harley’s feet, “And I’ve seen how you and Peter look at each other. It’s the same exact look. All exasperation and friendship and warmth and  _ love _ . Harley, you love him. And even more he loves you.” 

Abbie stepped towards the door, pausing at the frame, “And I think that mom would have wanted you to go after him. I think she would have loved him.” 

And just like that she left the room leaving Harley alone in his thoughts. Maybe she was right. Maybe Peter and him had a shot. Maybe he could do this. 

But then again, he realized, his heart sinking, if Peter loved him, why wasn’t he by Harley’s side as he recovered?

  
  


 

_ Four Days before the kiss _

 

 

“Hey,” Ned called, walking into his room. 

Harley looked up from the laptop, grinning at his friend, “Hey yourself.”

“Whats up,” Ned was standing awkwardly, shifting his feet, “Besides the- you know.” 

“Besides me being unable to do shit?” Harley huffed himself up, sitting up, hanging his broken ankle off the bed, “Nothing. Very much literally, when I say that.”

“Yeah, I’d guess,” Ned made a motion to the bed, “Can I sit?” 

Harley raised an eyebrow, nodding. 

He didn’t know if it was just in his head or not, but Ned seemed… off. Not weird, just… off. He seemed like he had too much on his mind to be present in any conversation. The last few times that  Ned had visited, they had mostly chatted about different TV shows that they liked. But this wasn’t those last few times, it was more… awkward. 

Ned sat down, “So like… can we talk?” 

“Aren’t we talking right now?” Harley got a bad feeling in his gut as he felt the grin slip off his face. Something was wrong. Something is definitely wrong. 

“I just wanna talk,” Ned rushed his words, putting his hands up, “It’s nothing bad- well I don’t think it’s bad.” 

“Ned, dude,” Harley sat with a straight back, no easy feat with the cracked ribs, “You’re making me nervous.” 

“I’m not trying to,” Ned assured him, “I just- this is awkward.” 

“Are you like trying to confess or something?” Harley joked, trying to ease the tension, “Because if so, I’m flattered but uh, I’m just not that into you.” 

The joke didn’t work. It only succeeded in making the air around them thicker with a type of anxiety. Harley blinked, “That was a joke.” 

“I’m the token straight friend, Harley,” Ned rolled his eyes at him, “I knew it was a joke.”

“Good.” 

“I do gotta talk to you about someone you are that into though.” 

“Nope.” Harley suddenly found the floor of his room very very interesting. 

“Harley, come on-” 

“Nope.” 

“I just want you two to talk!” 

“Ned,” Harley looked at him again, face blank, “Maybe I don’t want to talk to him.” 

Ned gave him a just as blank stair, “Dude, you have got to be kidding me. So you found out he’s Spider-Man. So what?”

“So what?” He shook his head in disbelief, focusing on the ground again, “So what he tricked me into falling in love with him as Spider-Man only to cut me off after things didn’t work out between me and Peter? So what he was the online friend that I had talked to him about so many times, telling him that I missed him and he just didn’t say anything?” 

Harley scoffed, face feeling hot, “So what I was just a game to him? So what he never actually cared about me-” 

“That's not true,” Ned interrupted him, more than a little awkwardly, “He misses you a lot. He’s been a complete wreck since it happened.” 

“He’s been a wreck?” Harley’s voice was quiet, and he felt like Eliza Schuyler at the beginning of the song Burn, “He’s been a wreck? I have a broken ankle. I have a broken wrist. I can barely sit up because of three cracked ribs. I cant open my left eye all the way because its swollen shut. It hurts to breathe because I got fucking stabbed.”

His voice was still as a storm in silence as he continued his tyrad, “I can’t sleep because every time I do, I feel cold rain and a fucking knife. I can’t stay awake because my body is absolutely fucking wrecked. I can’t do anything. I can’t make anything, and I feel so fucking useless because I’m always making something. And now I fucking can’t because my wrist is shattered.” 

“And, ha,” he let out a dry laugh, “Lets not forget that everyone is on fucking glass around me, because I’m so fuckin’ breakable aren’t I? If someone taps me I’m gonna fuckin’ break and they seem to fuckin’ know it. Abbie doesn’t leave my side. Pepper won’t leave me the fuck alone. Rhodey is in constant over protective mode. And Tony? Tony won’t even fucking look at me, let alone talk to me.”

“So don’t,” Harley swallowed, his eyes stinging, “So don’t even start with that Peter has been a wreck.” 

Ned blinked back at him, but sighed, “Harley, you both are wrecks. Peter is just as bad. He can’t look anyone in the eye, he’s avoiding school, and he’s throwing himself into crime with no care. He doesn’t know what to do. He told me that he hasn’t been sleeping at all-”

Harley snorted, but Ned just powered on, “And I mean at all. He looks ready to collapse at any movement. And he’s going out and fighting crime and its breaking him to the bone. I’m pretty sure that he hasn’t been, like, eating and stuff.” 

“I really don’t know all the details about what happened,” He persisted, ignoring how Harley’s body was curling in on itself like a cat that was about to be on the defence, “I just know that you two need to talk it through, no wallow in your own pitty storms. You guys love each other. And you’re both hurt- um, granted you’re uh, a little more banged up than he is, but uh, he really really has been fucked up since it happened.” 

Ned took a deep breath wrapping up his little rant, “Please just like, talk to him.” 

“One little problem with that,” Harley’s voice was cold and even, “He hasn’t shown up. He hasn’t stopped by. He hasn’t check in to see if I was okay.  _ He _ is the one avoiding  _ me _ . He doesn’t care- he never fucking did! And the fact that he hasn’t even stopped to see if I was okay just fucking proves that. He doesn’t care, and doesn’t care to check if i’m okay! He doesn’t care at all! He  didn’t even care enough to see if I was dying in the hospital! He didn’t care enough to visit me in  _ a god damn coma _ let alone show up here and try to talk to me! You want me to talk to Peter?! Tell Peter that unless he wants to get his ass over here and tell me exactly why the fuck he doesn’t give a  _ shit  _ about me! You fucking tell Peter Parker that if he wants me to fucking talk to him, he should have fuckin’ talked to  _ me _ ! He should have fuckin’ come to me and talk to me and fuckin’ been here! Because he hasn’t been here! He’s been fuck knows where giving absolutely zero shits about me! If he  _ cares  _ so fucking much, why the hell hasn’t he been here?!”

“Harley,” Neds eyes were wide and Harley shook his head.   
  
“Get out Ned.” 

“What-”

“Just go.”

“But Harley-” 

“I don’t wanna talk,” Harley shuffled into lying down, curling up on his side, facing away from Ned. He heard the soft click of the door. He sighed. 

Peter was suffering too. 

What bullshit. 

Why the fuck would Peter be suffering? It wasn’t like he was the one who got fucking stabbed. It wasn’t like he was the one who had been fucking played with emotionally.

Except he wasn’t really sure Peter meant to do that. 

Because at the end of the day, he was Peter Parker. He was good, and kind, and nice, and wouldn’t ever try to purposely fuck with someone's heart. He wasn’t that kind of person. So why had he done it? Why had he let Harley get attached to Peter and Spider-Man only to cut him off when it was getting to real? Why? 

He opened tumblr. 

 

[ **IronMansMechanic + IronMan-DidNothingWrong** ]

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something       ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _Peter can we talk_ **_|_** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ Peter c _ **_|_ ** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something         ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _Peter I really_ **|** ] >

  
  


[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something  __        ]>

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ I miss you. I didn’t think it was _

_ possible but god, I miss you so god damn much. I  _

_ didn’t even know I could miss someone that much,  _

_ Peter, Please _ **_|_ ** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ I miss you. I didn’t think it was  _

_ possible but god,I miss you so g _ **_|_ ** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something       ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ Why the fuck did you fucking  _

_ leave me why the fuck did you not come back when i _

_ was in the hospital why the hell are you ike fucking  _

_ dumb because i nede you and i need you to be here  _

_ and you aren here why arent you here peter why arent  _

_yo here_ **_|_** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ Why the fuck did you fucking _

_ leave me why the fuck did you not come back when i _

_ was in the hospital why the h _ **_|_ ** ] >   
  


[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something      ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _please please please talk to me,_

_ I need you, please please peter god please youre the  _

_ only person in my life that knows everything about  _

_ me youre the only one thats ever been able to handle  _

_ all of my flaws and refernces and everything thats ever  _

_ been wrong with me and please peter, plese, please _

_ Peter _ **_|_ ** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ please please please talk to me, _

_ I need you,  please please peter god please youre the   _

_ only person in my life that knows everything abo _ **|** ] >   
  


[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something __  ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ Is this the end of our friendship?  _

_ Of everything? I miss you and I love you and I hate  _

_ myself  because I cant tell youthat because i dont  _

_know if what we have is real peter, please_ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ is this the end of our friendship? _

_ Of everything? I miss you and I love yo _ **|** ] >

  
  


[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something     ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ i cant do this fuck fuck uck i  _

_ cant do this i cant do this peter ic ant i love you and  _

_ i cant do this and i cant do this i cant i cant i miss you  _

_ and youre my bestfriend and more and i cantd o this  _

_ i cant do this im osrry soryy im i ove you please  _

_ please please please peter please i cant dot his _ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _i cant do this fuck fuck uck i_

_ cant do this i cant do this peter ic ant i love you and  _

_ i cant do this and i cant do this i cant i cant i miss you  _

_ and youre my bestfriend an _ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something     ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ Pete r _ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _P_ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something     ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _Please_ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _Ple_ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something     ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _I love you_ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ I love y _ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** _ I lo _ **|** ] >

 

[ **IronMansMechanic:** Say Something     ] >

  
  


Harley didn’t say anything. 

  
  
  


_ Three days before the kiss _

 

 

He doesn't look up as the door opens, because unlike Ned, MJ liked to warn people before coming over to people’s house. After what had happened with Ned, he wasn’t really sure that he wanted to talk to anyone but this was MJ. MJ had been his first real friend at school. Sure he had Peter online but when they had met in real life, they had not liked each other. MJ was the one who had known about his conflicting feelings, and had been there for him when he had kissed Spider-Man. 

Though, she must have thought he was an idiot for pinning over both Spider-Man and Peter Parker at the same time. 

“You’re an idiot.” 

Harley blinked, “What's your point?” 

“My point,” MJ drawled, “Is that you are literally getting in the way of your own happiness you absolute dumbass.” 

“I am literally mortally wounded? I was very close to dying, several times?” 

“Don’t act like that matters,” MJ stepped into the room, frown still present on her face, “As happy as I am that you’re alive, what I’m not so happy about is you and Peter going stagnation still when you two finally have a shot of being happy. What gives?”

“He hasn’t come over,” Harley mumbled, feeling like a child being scorned. 

MJ scoffed, “Bullshit, Keener. You and I both know that he's been on the tower roof every night, debating on whether to hang outside your window.” 

“What?” Harley blinked in surprise, his brow furrowed, “What do you mean?” 

“Are you-” MJ paused, staring at her friend, “You’re serious. You seriously didn’t know that Peter has been on the roof of Stark Tower every single night since you got back.”

“No. I didn’t,” Harley admitted, shrugging his shoulders, eyes on the ground, “I figured he was just off not giving a shit.” 

“You’re so stupid, Harley,” MJ face palmed, her frame heaving with a sigh, “Of course Peter cares. He can’t just not care about you.” 

“Then why hasn’t he come in?” 

“He thinks you don’t want him too.” 

Harley rolled his eyes at her, “That's bullshit and he should know it.” 

“Well Do you want him to come in?” 

“Yes,” Harley hesitated, “Maybe. I don’t know.” 

MJ made a motion to the chair, and Harley nodded as she placed the machine he had been fiddling with on the desk, sitting down and turning to him, “Why don’t you know.” 

“How am I supposed to know what I don’t know?”

“Because you’re Harley Keener,” Her words seemed like the most obvious thing in the world, “And you like working through puzzles and problems. And I hate to tell you this, but you’re a puzzle. Figure yourself out.” 

“That's not how that works,” Harley’s voice was heavier than he realized, “Puzzles are easy. I am not.” 

MJ snorted, “Oh you’re plenty easy Keener. Just a bit hard headed.” 

“What does that even mean?” 

“It means,” MJ rolled her eyes, “That you are the most obvious person in the world. You care about Peter, and Peter cares about you and yattah yattah it's all really really cute. But you’re over here, wondering whether Peter likes you, when he has admitted it to you, and is now in panic mode because you got hurt and he didn’t save you fast enough. So put two and two together, and ask yourself why you don’t want him to come in.” 

“I don’t-“ MJ have him a look. He blinked hard again, “I just. I don’t- I don’t know.” 

MJ sighed, “Could it possibly be the fact that you’re afraid?” 

“I’m… I’m not afraid…” 

“Okay.” MJ paused, looking like she had stuff on her mind, “So why aren’t you doing anything about it?”

“It's not like I’m not doing anything, I’m just…” 

“Not doing anything,” MJ deadpanned, rubbing her temple. She looked at him with calculating eyes, “Why did you say that Peter couldn’t be your Peter?” 

“I don't-” 

“Why did you say that Peter couldn’t be Spider-Man?” 

“I don’t kn-”

“Harley.” 

“I- I just,” Harley closed his eyes, “I ruled him out MJ. I asked myself, is Peter Parker my Peter? Is he Spider-Man? And I ruled him out because I thought I was fooling myself. I thought that I was projecting onto these two guys I liked this one guy who would never like me back.”

“But he does like you back.” 

“I didn’t know that then.” 

“But you know that  _ now. _ ” 

“Do you think it even matters?”

“Yes,” MJ said firmly, “I think that it matters a lot. You know why?” 

Harley nodded, and MJ continued, “Because Peter is so much more in love with you than I have ever seen him be with anyone. He comes  _ alive  _ around you Harley. And you  _ glow _ around him. You two are literally made for each other, Harley, and the fact that you sit here questioning whether ‘it matters’ is kind of sad. Because it does matter. I didn’t sit around for months watching you two tiptoe around each other just to not see you two collide.” 

“I just,” Harley started fiddling with the scrap metal that he kept on his bedside table, “I don’t know MJ. I don't know.” 

“Yes you do.” 

“No,” Harley felt heavy, “I don’t know. I have no idea about anything. I don't even know if what you said is  _ true, _ MJ. I just don’t know.” 

“Then figure it out, because you know I am not a liar,” Her voice was stiff, unforgiving, “And you know that he is the best thing to happen to you for awhile. Vise Versa.” 

“Okay. I’ll figure it out.” 

Deep in his soul he knew he wouldn’t.

  
  


_ Two Days before the kiss _

 

 

“I didn’t mean to fall in love with Tony,” Pepper was smiling to herself as she said this. 

They’re sitting on the couch, in the dark. The news is on in the background, and they were talking softly. If they ever had a version of domestic, it would be this. They hadn’t been talking about Tony or love, but after a few seconds of silence Pepper had decided to say something about it. 

Harley blinked, “What do you mean?” 

“I mean that I really tried to not fall in love with Tony,” Pepper glanced at him, “I obviously failed on that aspect.” 

“Obviously.”

“But originally I tried pretty hard to not fall in love with him.” 

“Why?” 

“Well,” Pepper considered the question, “When I met Tony he was in a pretty different place. And I only met him because he put an error in some of the statistics, and I called him out for the mistake. I was promoted immediately. But at the time I didn’t really  _ know _ Tony. Sure I knew him, but I didn’t know him. So I assumed the tabloids were true, until proven otherwise.” 

“That wasn’t a very Pepper Potts thing to do,” Harley raises a brow, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you even read a magazine let alone believe whats in one.” 

Pepper rolled her eyes at his words, “This was a bit of time ago, Harley. Like, I was still an intern when I met him.” 

“Wild.” 

“Very,” Pepper smiled a soft smile again, “I was so afraid of being hurt by him at first, because of my experiences with other bosses. But Tony never once made a move on me. He treated me like he treated every other close friend of his. He still slept around and drank, and to be honest, I saw less and less of that as my days as his personal assistant than I thought I would. He still did it quite frequently but, at some point, I think I realized that it was all just… a show, of a boy who wanted to do something but had already decided he wasn’t worth whatever he wanted to do.” 

Pepper blinked, “Then Afghanistan happened.” 

“Yikes,” Harley inhaled sharply, “That must have been… horrible.” 

“It was. It really was,” Pepper’s voice was soft, “I was so so worried. And I was so scared. And I think that's when I knew I was in love with him. I can’t pinpoint the moment I fell in love but I can the moment I knew I was in love. He was in Afghanistan and we were going over everything we could, to try to figure out where he was. And Rhodey, stops, and stares at me, and says, ‘We’ll find him. We have too.’ and I said, ‘He's out there. There is no way he's dead.’ and it hit me, that it wasn't that there was no way he was dead. It was that everything in my soul broke at the thought of him dead. Especially him dead without any of his friends or family around.”

“Oh.” 

“It wasn’t a big moment I guess,” Pepper shrugged, “And then when he got back. The first thing he did was get a cheese burger.” 

Harley remembered that. He had been five or six when Tony Stark- His hero! The guy who had made so many cool inventions and done so many cool things Had saved himself from some bad people! He was so cool!- had come back from Afghanistan and held a press conference. He had sat in front of the TV, waiting to see Tony. Tony had come out, sat down and talked as he ate his cheeseburger. At the time Harley had thought it was really funny. Now, Harley understood just how badass of a move that eating a cheeseburger and then canceling the weapons programs. 

He wondered what had gone through everyone else's head in that moment.

Pepper was still talking, “It just proved to me that he was still Tony. My Tony. The man who was so much more than I thought  at the beginning. Who was so good. He was still my Tony.” 

Harley nodded, and she sighed, “It was… hard after that. We didn’t start dating until after the Hammer incident. But even then… Iron Man was hard on us. On dating. Because I was so worried constantly. It was nerve wracking. Then New York happened… and the world got so much more dangerous, and we were all so scared. Not to mention all of the trauma that came with it.”

“Yeah,” Harley remembered the panic attack he had driven Tony to when he had first met him, “I know.” 

“I didn’t handle it the best,” Her voice was soft, and her eyes sad, “I handled it poorly. Especially because I just didn’t know how to do it. But we managed to survive it, despite a few bumps and breaks.” 

“Yeah,” Harley cleared his throat, “So what’s the point of all of this?” 

“The point,” Pepper smiles at him again, “Is that even to this day, I get terrified of when he puts on the armor. Because all I can think is, ‘what if this is the last time?’ I’m always scared and on the lookout. I don’t know what would happen if he went  _ down,  _ and I don’t know what would happen if he  _ stayed _ down. And it scares me constantly.” 

Pepper held her breath for a moment before letting it go, “But every time he gets back up- because he does. He does always gets back up- and I think, ‘That’s him. That’s the man I’m in love with.’ Because even though I’m so terrified of losing him, even though I wish he could give up fighting crime and stay safe, even though I freeze whenever I see him on the news, I love him. And I love the man he’s become. I’m so terrified of losing him constantly, but that’s who he is. Someone who helps and tries to help and tries to do it right. He tries to save everyone, and when he doesn’t he asks himself how he could in the future. He prepares for things. He’s  _ good. _ And that makes me the luckiest and happiest woman in the world.” 

“Anyway,” Pepper stood up, stretching, “I’m gonna head to bed. Goodnight, sweetheart.” 

“Night.”

 

Harley stared at the Tv screen trying to process everything he had just learnt. So that’s how it felt and that’s what it took to love a hero. He blinked hard. 

On screen, they were doing a live news coverage of Spider-Man fighting a group of armed men who were firing wildly at him. There was a hostage, behind the men, and everyone who was on the scene and watching at home could tell that Spider-Man was trying to give them an opportunity to get away when they could. By distracting a street full of armed robbers that must have been robbing the bank. 

Harley inhaled sharply. 

Oh. This is what Pepper has meant. 

A low sinking feeling rose in his chest as he stared at the scene. He knew that Peter had Spidey Sense and he could dodge all the bullets. But he couldn't do that if they were overriding his senses by having it be fired off in all directions at him at all times. Harley watched the scene with eyes wide. 

He was sure a bullet hit him, but Peter only made a quip, not loud enough for the cameras to catch, but loud enough to know. 

Harley blinked harder. 

Peter had webbed up one of their legs, and was pulling the robber towards his friend. However, with the force it took to swing him when he wasn’t in motion at first, he had left a part of his side open. 

Harley couldn’t breath. 

He understood how Pepper could tell Tony to give up the suit. Because he was watching Peter get shot at, and all he could do was be on the other side of the screen, panicking. Because that’s what he was doing. Panicking. God he was so scared for Peter his entire heart was gripped in fear. 

He couldn’t watch. 

But he did. He watched as Peter got hit, and he watched as Peter webbed up the bad guys. He watched as Peter walked over to the victims and comforted them. He watched as Peter webbed away. All while he was bleeding down his side. 

And he also got what Pepper meant by loving someone  _ good. _ Because that’s what Peter was. Good. He was so, so, so, so, so, good. That he would rather suffer and bleed out, than let other people be hurt. He would rather save someone else than realize he had been shot. God he knew what Pepper meant. 

He blinked harder. 

Opening his phone he typed out a text. Then deleted it. 

He texted Tony instead, informing him that Peter was hurt. 

He understood how Pepper felt. Being the one that couldn’t help the person you love. He understood. 

He wished he didn’t.    
  
  


_ One Day before the kiss _

  
  


Harley was perched on the couch, his go to place these days. His room was too cramped, and too small, and he felt trapped in there. The added fact that he couldn’t actually do shit made it so much worse. 

He browsed through the TV, trying to find something that didn't want to make him claw his eyes out. The battle was lost however, as every news channel was covering some bullshit thing that happened in the city and every TV show decided that it would be a great time to replay the dumbest episodes of their worst shows. The stupid UnNatural show was on, but it was the stupidest episode he had ever seen. He flipped the channel. Victron season eight. Gag. Nothing worse watching. 

He sighed, kind of frustrated. 

The door opened, and Tony stepped through, looking like a bus or two had hit him. Harley sat up straighter, “Hey.” 

“Hey,” Tony’s entire body was tense, “I made something for you.” 

Harley had figured that he had been building something, but he wasn’t prepared for Tony to toss him a black band that was the size of a finger. He raised an eyebrow and caught it with his good hand. 

“Um,” Harley eyed the black, sleek looking ring, “Any reason you’re giving me a ring?”

“It's a nano ring,” Tony’s voice was heavy, “It holds armor in it.” 

“Tony-” 

“Harley, you never have to be hurt again. I made this,” He was tense and he joined Harley on the couch, “I made this so you didn’t ever have to ever be hurt again. Kid, you can have this and be okay. You can be  _ protected _ , Harley. You can be okay.”

“Tony-” 

“It's why I’ve been so fucking busy lately. It’s all I’ve been working on. Because I need you to be okay and safe and okay. You, Pepper, Abbie. You all need to be safe. Harley, you never have to be hurt again, you can be okay. This- this doesn’t ever have to leave your side, you’ll never not have the armor on you. You’ll always be  _ protected. _ ” 

“Tony,” Harley’s voice was soft, “ _ Dad. _ I can’t accept this.” 

Tony glances at him, his brow furrowed, “What do you mean you can’t accept this?” 

“I mean I can’t accept this.” 

“Kid,” Tony’s voice was slightly serious, “I built you a nanotech suit of armor that could protect you and keep you alive if you ever got kidnapped again and you can’t accept that? What the hell?” 

“As cool as the nanotech is,” Harley shook his head, trying to find the words, “If and when I don the armor, it will be my armor. I can’t wear armor you’ve made. It has to be mine.” 

“Harley. Harley you can’t be serious,” Tony’s voice was firm, “You could protect yourself. No one could touch you.” 

“No one can touch me, Dad,” Harley’s voice was just as firm, “I will always be okay. Because I have you and Abbie and Pepper and Rhodey and Happy and everyone. I have everything I need to be okay.” 

“But you could get fucking kidnapped Harley!” 

“And if I do, I’ll get out of it.” 

“God dammit Harley,” Tony looked slightly broken, “Why can’t you take the fucking armor! You can’t get hurt like that again.” 

“I don’t care if I do,” Harley probably wasn’t much better, “Because at the end of the day, what doesn't kill me makes me stronger. And if I don the armor, if I decide to make myself armor, it will be  _ my _ armor.” 

“Harley-” 

“Tony,” Harley cut himself off, “It needs to be my armor. Because if its not, then I can’t be a hero in it.” 

“I don't need you to be a hero, I need you to be okay.” 

“And I will be. I will be,” Harley assured him, “Because my dad is Tony Stark. And even if I get fucked up a bit, someone will always save me. And  _ when _ I decide to put on the suit, it will be my suit. I will be ready, and i’ll be able to fight. I want to be able to make it my own. Its got to be my own suit.” 

Tony looked tired, “Are you sure?” 

“Yeah.” 

“So,” his voice was slightly more joking, like he had put something together that he hadn’t realized before, “Did I just spent a week in a workshop developing a new technology that's only been done in a country like Wakanda, just for you to tell me you need your own style?”

“I mean,” Harley chuckled, “Yeah, you did.” 

“You’re my least favorite Child. I love Abbie more.” 

Harley snorted, “Don’t we all?” 

“Yeah,” Tony rolled his eyes, “Don’t we all.” 

They sat in a comfortable silence for a second. A father and a son, coming to an understanding. Coming to an impasse. 

Harley turned to his dad, “You wanna watch a shitty movie?” 

“Kid,” Tony grinned at him, still tired but looking much more relaxed, “You read my mind. And don’t curse, Pepper doesn’t like it when you do.”    
  


“So what about Peter?” 

Harley glanced at his dad- because that's who Tony was. His Dad. Not by blood, but he was his dad and had been since he crashed into his garage when he was just a kid. It had just taken him a near death experience to truly accept that- his brow furrowing, “What do you mean?” 

“What about Peter?” Tony asks again, rolling his eyes. 

Harley still doesn't know what he means. The question came out of nowhere. After the cry fest that had been that afternoon, they had both settled down on the couch to watch some shitty 80s sci fi movie they both loved to hate and hated to love. Peter Parker had never even been in the equation. 

“Elaborate.”

Tony sighed, halfway at the movie, halfway at his dumbass son, “What are you going to do about your feelings about Peter?” 

“Oh,” Harley shifted, suddenly feeling to awkward, “Nothing I guess.” 

“Nothing?” Tony snorted at him, “Kid, you doing nothing is a bad sign and you know it.” 

Harley sighed, shaking his head, “I kind of don’t know if I  _ should _ do anything.” 

“You’re a mess,” Tony rolled his eyes again, this time very much at the movie’s showcasing of evil robots, “You know he likes you.” 

“Does he?” 

“Kid,” Tony looked at him, raising a brow, “I’ve said it. MJ has said it. Abbie has said it. Pepper has said it. Hell,  _ Rhodey _ has said it. We’ve all said how in love you and Peter are. And yet, here you are asking if he likes you.” 

“I don’t know. I just don’t know if he does.” 

“But you know him.” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah,” Tony rolled his eyes, “‘Oh.’ It's not like the two of you have known each other for a year and have this deep bond of love and friendship.” 

“Oh.” 

“Harley,” Tony’s tone was slightly serious, slightly joking, “Its eleven. Are you going to take the shot or not?” 

“What do you,” Harley cleared his throat, “What do you mean?” 

“I mean,” Tony patted his shoulder, getting up as he did, “You miss every shot you don’t take.” 

Harley blinked hard. Tony left the room, mentioning going to bed, but Harley wasn’t paying attention. 

Peter knew him. And he knew Peter. They were good. They were good together. And he would miss this shot if he didn’t take it. He grabbed his phone.    
  
  


Harley:

Hey

Meet me on the roof around midnight.

We need to talk. 

Peter: 

Okay. 

  
  


_ The Kiss _

 

Harley stood there, on the roof of Stark Tower at midnight. He was cold. He wouldn’t lie but a part of him felt like the cold was grounding him. He wasn’t nervous about what was going to happen. He wasn’t not nervous though. The anxiety he felt was bubbling in him, but this was Peter. He knew Peter. And Peter knew him. 

They would get there. 

He sat at the edge of the roof, careful not to slip on the ankle boot. It was a beautiful night. New York city never slept and as Harley looked out on the horizon line he saw how true that really was. It was beautiful. 

“Hey,” Peter was behind him, in civilian clothes. A ratty hoodie and a brown overcoat. His hair was tossed, probably from swinging here. He looked awkward, his cheeks red, fidgeting with the sleeves of his coat. 

Harley had never felt happier than he did when laying eyes on Peter Parker. He smiled at him, soft and hesitant, “Hey yourself.” 

“What um,” Peter sat, a few feet of space in between them. Harley frowned but made no move to change it, “What did you want to talk about.” 

“Peter,” Harley gave him a look, that he hoped translated to ‘are you serious?’, “Come on. We need to talk about it.” 

“I know,” Peter looked away from him, his shoulders slumping. He leaned back, looking at the sky, in a move that Harley was sure he had done before, “So, I’m Spider-Man.” 

“So you’re Spider-Man. And everyone but me knew this.” 

“Yeah,” Peter still wasn’t looking at him, “At least everyone important knew.” 

Harley moved towards him a little, but if Peter noticed he didn’t say, “So why didn’t you tell me? You know you could have.” 

“I know,” Peter finally looked at him, and for a second all Harley could do was memorize his face. From the way Peter’s breath hitched, his eyes scrolling on Harley, as if checking he was still alive, it seemed Peter was doing the same thing. Their eyes met, and Peter glanced away, sighing, “I just…” 

Harley stayed quiet as Peter continued, “I just didn’t want to disappoint you. At first it was, the idea that if you knew that  _ I  _ was Spider-Man that you may not like me. Well, that you wouldn’t like Spider-Man. That’s why I kept it a secret initially. I thought that you might have just… been better off not knowing Spider-Man was the same guy that threw glitter on you a month after meeting you.” 

“It was a hard secret to keep from you,” Peter curled in on himself a little, looking everywhere but Harley, “I really didn’t want to. And then homecoming happened and- I don’t know. I messed everything up.” 

“You didn’t,” Harley reassured, “I’m the one who kissed you.” 

“Not as Spider-Man, I messed it up as me,” Peter looked at him again, “I saw the guy who had been making weapons driving Liz to the dance. I slipped away to go ask her who that was, and when she answered her dad and that he was just dropping her off on his way to finish up some work, I kind of knew that I needed to go after him. I almost didn’t, though.” 

“I’m glad you did,” Harley commented, eyes still glued on Peter, “I may have been upset, but you’re a good person. I fell in love with you because you were a good person.” 

Peter smiled softly, “You mean you fell in love with Spider-Man because he’s a good person.” 

“Peter,” Harley deadpanned, “You are Spider-Man. And even then, I fell in love with the Peter I knew online first. Then the Peter in real life. Then Spider-Man. He was the last one too even cross my heart, Peter. Which is stupid because it was you all three times.” 

“Yeah.” 

“Speaking of your online presence,” Harley drawled, “I do want to know. Why didn’t you just  _ tell _ me when you figured it out?” 

Peter thought for a second, “I couldn’t.” 

“Couldn’t or wouldn’t?” 

“Couldn’t,” Peter decided on after a moment, “Tumblr was this thing of anonymity for me. It was a place where I didn’t have to bite my tongue and hold my breath. I could rant about how cool Iron Man is and also state my opinions on everything to my five followers and it was good. It was amazing. Because everyone knew I was Peter they just didn’t know I was Peter Parker, nerd who answers questions in class and doesn’t talk to anyone besides his two friends.” 

“I was so afraid that you wouldn’t want to even be near me,” Peter whispered, “Because you said you hated me. And I know what you meant. But I also  _ know _ you. When you say you hate something it means you either actually hate it or aren’t ready for it. I didn’t want to ruin everything. And then I did. I went and ruined it again. Because I pulled away. Online I stopped texting you as Peter and started messaging you as Peter Parker. But you missed me so I messaged you every once and awhile and I felt like such a shitty person cause you were telling me how upset you were that i wasn’t texting you and all I could think of was how if you  _ knew _ it was me you’d be disappointed.” 

“I’m not.” 

“Then why did you say that I couldn’t be you Peter?” 

Harley shrugged slightly, “I had already ruled you out. Plus I has just been  _ stabbed _ I don’t think that’s necessarily the best state of mind to find out that all three of the guys you like are the same person.” 

“Yeah.” 

“But like,” Harley continued, “I just want you to know that I would have never been disappointed. I would have been ecstatic. The night I kissed you- er- Spider-Man, I was devastated because I wanted you to be  _ you _ so badly and I thought that you weren’t you and then I wanted all three of you to be you, and wow I’m confusing myself with this sentence.” 

Peter laughed, “No, no, I get it. I understand.” 

“Yeah,” Harley smiled at him, “I knew you would.” 

“So how do you feel,” Peter dragged, looking away from him, “About me being Spider-Man. And your Peter?” 

“Peter, come on,” Harley shot him a lok, “You can’t be that dense. Please tell me you just heard what I said.” 

“I did. It would be nice to hear you say it again though.” 

Harley let out a breathy laugh, “You just want me to fluff your ego!” 

“Maybe so!”

“Peter,” Harley laughed, “The fact that you are Spider-Man and My Peter is the best thing to ever happen to me. I’m so happy about it, I can’t even described how ecstatic I am! I spent the entire week being so confused and frustrated, but like- at the end of it all, I’m so happy about this. This is one of  _ the best _ things I have had happen to me.  _ You _ are one of the best things to ever happen to me! Peter, you saved my life! You’re my best friend! I’m so happy!” 

“Do you know how much that means to me?” There was a smile budding on Peter’s face, “Do you know how long I’ve wanted to hear you say that?”

“No,” Harley smiled just as wide, “But I know how long I’ve been in love with you.” 

“Bet it wasn’t as long as I’ve been in love with you.” 

“I fell in love with you first time you messaged me.” 

“Really?” Peter blinked, and smiled harder, “Because I fell in love with you the first time I saw one of your shitposts.”

“I can’t believe I’m out here trying to have a heartfelt moment and you just want to one up me!” 

Peter’s laugh might have been the best thing he ever heard, “I can’t help it! Harley, you’re actually the most amazing person in my life! The fact that you even look at me, just makes me feel so, so, so, so, so, overjoyed because you  _ like _ me! You! Harley Keener! Likes me! Who is just some dumbass from Queens!” 

“You are not just some dumbass, you’re the best-” 

“But that's not the point!” Peter wheezed, grin ever present, “The point is that the fact that you like me is astronomical and I am so fucking happy and lucky- Harley!” 

“Yes?” 

“You’re my favorite person on this earth,” He ran a hand through his hair, “You are the best thing in my life.”

“Oh,” Harley felt his grin deepen, his voice going soft and his cheeks feeling warm, “Really?” 

Despite the warm feeling in his chest, he shivered against the cold breeze that blew against him. He cursed himself for wearing his pajama shorts and short sleeve T-Shirt. At least he was cursing himself, until Peter shrugged off his coat, “You cold?” 

“Uh,” Harley’s voice caught in his throat, “A little yeah.” 

Peter scooted towards him, so close their breaths mixed in the air, placing the jacket around Harley. Harley slipped it on, wincing at the movement, his stomach still in bad shape from the stabbing. He sank into the jacket. It smelt like coffee and vanilla. It smelt like Peter. 

Peter’s eyes darkened when they caught his tiny flinch, “I’m sorry.” 

“What?” Harley was burrowing himself in this jacket. 

“I’m sorry,” Peter’s eyes were still dark, “I’m sorry that I wasn’t fast enough.” 

“Peter…” 

Peter shook his head, “No, Harley.  I wasn’t fast enough and you got  _ stabbed.  _ You flatlined. You flatlined and I couldn’t do anything other than cry with Tony and Abbie, because none of us knew if you were going to come back. And thank fuck you did. Thank fuck. Harley-” 

His voice was quiet and sad and tense, and it broke Harley’s heart, “I almost lost another person I loved because I wasn’t fast enough. I wasn’t good enough. I couldn’t save you-” 

“Peter,” Harley whispered, grabbing Peter’s hand, “You did save me. I’m alive. I’m okay. I’m breathing. I’m not dead. You saved me.” 

Peter shook, tears gathering in his eyes, “But you were almost gone. I almost lost you. You were almost gone, Harley. God you were almost gone. And I wasn’t fast enough.” 

“But you were,” Harley could feel his eyes stinging, and he leaned forward, his forehead touching Peters, “You were good enough. You were fast enough.” 

“But I,” Peter was crying, and Harley felt his own tears join Peters, “But I almost wasn’t.” 

“But you were.” 

“God Harley,” Peter laughed through his tears, his hand coming up to cup his cheek, “Can’t you understand that I’m trying to have a sad moment here?” 

“No,” Harley laughed, just as pathetic and sad, “I can’t. Because you’re so amazing Peter, you saved me. You saved me. I’m alive because of you.” 

“Harley,” Peter spoke softly.

Harley’s hand found a place on Peter’s neck, “Peter.”

The kiss was soft. It was soft and sad and  _ perfect.  _ It was everything the two of them had been feeling for so long but hadn’t admitted. It was all of the fear that had come when Harley had gotten hurt. It was all of the laughter and tears, and love, that the two of them had shared. It was every time they had messaged each other on tumblr. It was everything. It was amazing. 

Harley pulled back first, smiling wide, still crying, “That was so much better than kissing Spider-Man.” 

“Oh my god,” Peter threw his head back laughing, tears continuing to fall down his face, “I am Spider-Man!” 

“Yes, but this time we actually kissed.” 

“This time we actually kissed,” Peter leaned back in, his forehead resting on Harley’s again, “Want to do it again?” 

“Peter,” Harley laughed, smiling wide, “You read my mind.” 

The second kiss was still soft and good and amazing. It was so much. It was stunning. It was the best thing that Harley had ever experienced. And it was just a kiss. And it was the best thing Harley had ever known. He loved Peter. He loved Peter Parker. 

“Peter,” Harley pulled away again, laughing as Peter chased his lips, “Peter, I love you. I love you, Peter Parker.” 

“God,” Peter was grinning wide, his smile so perfect, “I love you too. I love you, Harley Keener, I love you so much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope y'all liked it. 
> 
> This chapter actually made me cry while writing the last part, because that kiss scene was so sweet and cute and good and lord knows how I wrote it at 2 am. I really am praying you guys like it. 
> 
> since this is the last offical chapter, special shout out to the following people: 
> 
> Emry, for betaing this fic and being there during my brainstorming and thinking and rambling at four am a few days after christmas because I had been reminded of how much I love Harely Keener. 
> 
> Mel, becuase you're so fucking awesome! 
> 
> Imp, for helping me think of more angsty head canons and shit. 
> 
> Astrid, who helped inspire this fic with their blog. 
> 
> Mauvera, Who 100% inspired the concept of the fic and the lap dance scene with her wonderful writing. 
> 
>  
> 
> As always, tell me what y'all think!! And please check out the Parkner Playlist on Spotify!


	10. Hurts Like Hell by Fleurie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley found a ring in Peter's sock drawer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HJFKLDF the epilouge!! 
> 
> This fic has been absolutely wild. And this chapter will just make you... Snap... with..... joy..... and other emotions! 
> 
> I hopey'all like it!

_Three Years Since The First Kiss_

_Ten Days Until The Rest of Their Lives_

  


Harley’s source of warmth was being dragged away from him. He grumbled, trying to drag Peter back towards the bed. He heard his boyfriend of three years chuckle and felt Peter’s lips grace his forehead. Harley blinked, “Mmmhmm, what’re you…?”

“Shh,” Peter smiled at him, “Go back to sleep.”

“But you’re my warmth,” He mumbled, already falling back to sleep, unaware of his boyfriend smiling at him.

Peter kissed his forehead again, “Maybe so, but I have superhero stuff to do.”

“Mmmm,” Harley hummed, curling into the blankets and Peters pillow, “Superheroing is stupid.”

“Sure it is.”

Harley yawned, “You should… you should come back to bed…”

“I will once superhero training is over.”

“Oh,” Harley crinkled his nose, still half asleep, “Boring… you should stay in bed with me..”

“Love,” Peter chuckled at him, still sitting on the bed, “I’d love to stay, but you know that I can't be late. Rhodey would kill me.”

“You could kill me,” Harley mumbled against the pillow, “I’d let you.”

Peter huffed out a laugh, “Are you saying that because you’re cold?”

“Maybe.”

“Harley, love,” His voice is soft and warm, “I’ll be back to cuddle and be your personal heater in a few hours. Until then I have training.”

“Mhmm,” Harley yawned again, “Sounds… sounds nice… darling…”

And just like that he was out for the rest of the morning.   


He blinked awake around eleven, still cold. He sat up, shivering at the cold apartment. He glanced around, grinning.

It had been three years since their first kiss, three years in a relationship with each other. Three really good years in his life. If he and Peter had been close during their friendship, they were inseparable when dating. It had been nice. Having his boyfriends constant warm presence by his side, being there for him no matter what. It was nice.

This was nice.

He was in a good place.

Despite Senior year kicking both their asses, despite Peter on route to actually being an avenger, despite Peter’s busy mentorship schedule with Miles, despite Harley’s plans to go to MIT and Peter’s aspirations of NYU, Harley felt like he was in a good place. He slithered out of bed, shivering as the cold breeze hit his legs. He smiled to himself. He had never grown out of wearing booty shorts to bed but Peter never seemed to mind. In fact he seemed to love the booty shorts. Harley felt his smile deepen, pulling on a hoodie that he knew was Peter’s.

Coffee and Vanilla. Peter Parker.

He flopped back on the bed, almost reaching for his phone to text said boyfriend that he was up, but paused. Peter had hit his growth spurt the summer before senior year and it always surprised Harley that his boyfriends clothes no longer fit him like a glove, instead hanging over his hands. Harley’s ever present grin hurt.

Despite the coldness of the first days of spring, Harley felt so warm.

He sat up again, taking note that they had left the room a mess last night. Clean clothes that Harley was sure that he had knocked off the bed were strewn across the floor and Harley chuckled to himself. God they were a mess. Harley carefully started picking the laundry up and smoothed them out, grabbing some socks to put in his drawer.

He paused looking into the sock drawer.

In the far back corner was something that he was pretty sure he had never seen. A small black velvet box. The kind that Harley had seen when Tony had proposed to Pepper. The kind that Abbie always fawned over on TV shows. The kind that he knew meant something more.

He took a breath, slipping the box into his hands, cracking it open.

Inside was a ring. Simple. Metallic. A smooth design, and a few diamonds. It didn’t look cheap, but didn’t look expensive either. Harley felt his eyes sting.

He didn’t take the ring out of the box as he snapped towards Peters bedroom door, “May!”

“Yes?” Her voice came from the kitchen.

“May,” He called, entering the room with what he was sure was a dopey smile, “May, look at this-”

“Oh my god,” May dropped the spoon she was holding, “I have no idea what that is- it's not- Oh! I must have left that there! In Peter’s sock drawer! It's a present! To uh.. Myself! It's a gift to myself!”

Harley shot her a look, which must have been stupid with the grin that was still stuck on his face, “May, come on. I’m not that dumb.”

“Well,” She drawled out the ‘e’ and looked anywhere but Harley- who was suddenly reminded of every time Peter was hiding something from him- didn’t mind, “You didn’t realize that you had fallen in love with Peter three different times.”

“Oh my god,” Harley squeaked, sitting down at the table, “That was three years ago! Y’all can’t keep holding that over my head!”

“Harley, honey,” May gave him a dry look, “You’re supposed to be a super genius.”

Harley made a verbal keyboard smash noise, before regaining focus on the most important thing, “May, is this an engagement ring?”

“Uhhhh…”

“Oh my god,” Harley stared at the ring with a big smile, eyes wide, “It is- Oh my god.”

“Harley..”

Harley could feel his face growing warm, “He’s going to propose to me. He’s going to propose to me!”

“Alright,” May sighed, leaning against the counter, “He’s planning on proposing to you.”

Harley jumped up, laughing with all the joy he felt bubbling in his throat, “He’s going to propose to me!”

“Honey,” May laughed loudly at Harley’s twirling around her kitchen, “He hasn’t proposed yet!”

“But he's going to! He’s going to propose! OH my god,” Harley stopped, looking at the ring, “When is he going to propose- I need to be ready- oh my god! He’s going to propose- May he’s going to propose!”

May smiled at him, rushing forward to hold his hands, “He’s going to propose! Are you going to say yes?”

“Am I?,” Harley sputtered loudly, “Of course I am! May! He’s _it_ for me. Peter is _it_ for me.”

“You’re _it_ for him too Harley,” Her smile grew wider, and she pushed her glasses up, and spoke in a joking manner, “I wouldn’t have let him buy the ring if I hadn’t know that you two were each other’s endgame!”

Harley felt a few happy tears escape his eyes, and he was sure he looked like a mad man, “He's going to propose to me, May.”

“He’s going to propose to you.”

“I’m so,” Harley let go of Mays hands looking at the box, “Happy. It’s perfect. He’s perfect.”

“I know that,” Her voice was soft but Harley wasn’t looking at her. He was looking at the small details of the ring, trying to memorize it.

“We had talked,” He cleared his throat, all the positive emotions and feelings getting stuck there for a second, “We had talked about getting married after college, but… god I’m so happy we’re getting married before! Oh my god!”

“Honey,” May laughed at him, “He couldn’t stand the idea of waiting- kept going on and on about how he was _sure_ you would find someone _better_ in college! Can you believe that?”

“No,” Harley said honestly, “Peter is the best. I don’t think anyone on this earth could be better.”

“See that’s what I said you would say,” May gave him an approving nod, “But Peter kept blabbering on about how good and amazing you are, and _surely_ someone better than him would see that and how he felt selfish because he loves you too much to let you go- isn’t he ridiculous?”

“Very,” Harley sighed happily, feeling love sick, his voice portraying that feeling, “I’m going to marry such a ridiculous stupid man.”

“You can say that again,” May snorted, “He has this entire plan too- oh you should really see it- oh and how he’s going to propose-“

May cut herself off at Harley’s eager nodding, remembering exactly who her audience was, “I mean whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?”

“Tell me!”

“I’ve spoiled too much!”

Harley blinked. There was only one place Peter could even think of proposing, “The roof of Stark Tower.”

“Psh,” May made an oversized shrugging motion, trying to seem nonchalant, “What’s Stark Tower? I’ve never heard of Stark tower!”

“May,” Harley laughed loudly, “He’s going to propose to me!”

“He’s going to propose to you!”

Harley felt his heart jump in his chest. This was the best thing to happen to him ever. He couldn’t breath, he was so happy, “May, he’s going to marry me. Me! Harley Keener-Stark!”

“Mhmm.”

“I’m gonna be Harley Parker,” Harley blinked, scrunching his nose, “God my name is not compatible with Parker.”

May busted out a loud with laughter, “Oh my god, that's what concerns you.”

“Yes,” Harley said, mostly joking but slightly serious, “Except… Parker-Keener? Keener-Parker?"

“How about,” May pretended to think for a second, “Harley and Peter Parker-Stark?”

“Perfect,” Harley’s voice was just as love struck as he felt, “That's perfect.”

May hummed at him, “It was always going to be perfect.”

The smell of something burning made the two of them look at each other. Then May sighed, slowly turning around, “Is my Mac and Cheese on fire?”

“Yeah, I think your Mac and Cheese is on fire.”

“God dammit,” May muttered, rushing over to the flaming pot of Mac and Cheese, “Not again.”

Harley laughed, more content with his life than he had been in years. He was getting proposed to. Him and Peter were going to get married. It was perfect. This was perfect.

 

 

_Eight Days Until The Rest of Their Lives_

  


“Oh sister dearest,” Harley called walking into the kitchen of his home, “I have something to tell you!”

A call came from the living room, “In here, say hi to Miles!”

“Hi Miles,” Harley walked in, taking in the scene before him. Abbie was sprawled out on the couch her long messy hair hanging over one of the edges. Miles was looking pitifully at her, but also seemed to be paying a lot of attention at his phone, and he waved a free hand in greeting at Harley. He paused, “Um. What happened here?"

“Lila Barton,” Miles responded, looking at his phone, “Is breaking her heart again.”

Harley sat down on a chair, raising an eyebrow, “Abbie, you aren’t dating Lila.”

“Don’t remind me,” she groaned, looking at him, “Not all of us can be fanfic characters.”

Miles snorted, “Tell me about it.”

“Hey wait,” Harley pointed a finger at him, “Aren’t you supposed to be in super hero training with Peter?”

“Technically? Yes,” Miles smiled at him, “But I got called away by my girl in the chair, and Peter was too busy chewing out The Captain to notice.”

Harley sighed, closing his eyes, “What’d he do this time?”

“Broke training rules.”

“Again?”

“Yeah,” Miles looked up at him, “You’d wonder how many times someone could get in trouble for breaking the same five rules.”

Harley nodded, “Aren’t they like pretty simple rules too?’

“Yep,” Miles popped the ‘P’ as he spoke, “Poor Peter Parker puts up with so much.”

“Oh my god,” Abbie groaned, “Can you like,  not be a nerd for a hot second?”

“Impossible.”

“Abbie,” Harley called her name gently, shit eating grin on his face, “You should know by now that all Spider-Mans are big losers.”

Miles squacked a protest, “That is so not true!”

“Miles,” Abbie cracked an eye open at him, “I took a pack of gum from a store and you told me I was going to go to jail.”

“Stealing is wrong Abigail!”

“It was a _pack of gum!”_

“But did you pay for that gum?”

“No.”

“Ah ha,” Miles pointed at her dramatically,  then looked at Harley with the same flare, “You heard her confession! Quick get the handcuffs!”

Harley snorted at his antics, “I’m not the super hero here, kid!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Abbie rolled her eyes, sitting up, “We get it. Miles is Spider-Man part two electric boogaloo.”

“Abbie, die.”

“No, no,” Harley grinned at the two of them, “Let her speak.”

Abbie stuck her tongue out at Miles, before plopping back down hanging off the couch, “Can’t I just not fall in love with a straight girl?”

“Um,” Harley interjected before Miles could, “You’re thirteen. You don’t know what love is like.”

Abbie whipped her head towards them, her glasses almost flying off in the process. Miles sighed in discontent, “Oh no.”

“Are _you,”_ Abbie growled, pointing at her older brother, “Telling _me_ that _I’m_ too young to know what love is?”

Miles looked at him, sighing, “You had to start her on this didn’t you?”

Harley shrugged. Abbie poured at the both of them, “For yalls information, out of the both of _everyone_ , I’m the most _normal_ person in this family! I- if anyone- should be able to fall in love at thirteen! But _no,”_ Abbie dramatically gestured to the world around her, “ _this_ is my life! A life with my brother and his boyfriend and their literal fanfic of a romance!”

“Seriously,” Miles was rubbing his temple, “This is like the seventieth time I’ve had to listen about how it’s unfair that you get the perfect fanfic life, and she has to deal with the ‘straight’ girl- which by the way! Lila is probably _not_ straight!”

Abbie turned her pout to Miles, “Miles, you’re a year older than us. You don’t see how she is at school.”

“Good,” Miles rolled his eyes, “I have to put with with you twos constant soft flirting outside of training I will stab my eyes out.”

“Yeah,” Harley nodded, motioning towards Miles, “He’s right. You two flirt softly all the time.”

“Whatever,” Abbie slumped over the chair again in her own misery.

“Also,” Miles glanced at her again, “You realize that if Harley and Peters relationship is a fanfic, you and Lila’s is a 50k slow burn fanfic, right?”

“Hey I resent that,” she huffed pointing at her brother, “If anything Harley and his disgustingly cute relationship is a 50k ‘enemies to friends to lovers’ fanfic.”

“With a sad epilogue?”

“Oh obviously.”

“Hey now,” Harley protested against them, “Our epilogue is us getting married!”

“What,” Miles sat up straighter, looking nervous, “Marriage? Who said anything about marriage?”

“Um,” Harley blinked at him. Guess Miles knew about the engagement ring, “The engagement ring that I found in his sock drawer?”

“You found the ring?!”

“Oh, wow,” Abbie blinked at him dryly, “I had a bet with Pepper that you wouldn’t find it for another month.”

“Hey!”

“Just saying,” she shrugged at him, “you’re a bit oblivious.”

“I am not!”

“Okay pause,” Miles made a ‘T’ motions with his hands, “I’ve known you two for maybe six months, and Peter for maybe seven or eight, but I’m gonna be honest with you, you are extremely oblivious. Like. First time I heard that story I was very confused because you’re like a super genius and yet…”

Abbie made a gesture to Miles, “Thank you! Finally! An opinion he values!”

“I value your opinion!” Harley protested again, “I wanted you to know that Peter is planning to propose to me!”

“Old News,” Abbie waved her hand in a way that screamed ‘not that big of a deal,’ which Harley made an offended noise to. Because this was a huge deal. The biggest deal. The best deal. Abbie just continued, “He asked for my blessing like… months ago.”

“Abbie shut up,” Miles hissed, trying to whisper but failing, “He’s not supposed to know!”

“Wait,” Harley’s brain was short wiring, “He asked for your blessing?”

“Yep.”

“He asked for your blessing to marry me?”

“Uh, doy.”

“Oh my god,” Harley felt his face heat and his smile grow wider than ever, “He’s the best ever. God I love him. I love him.”

“So you’ve made clear,” Abbie drawled at him, “Can we talk about my failed love life now?”

“Okay first of all, I don’t know how you too can be so cute and disgusting,” Miles pointed at Harley, then pointed at Abbie, “And you, are like, a five year old. You don’t have a failed love life!"

“Actually I’m eleven so shut the fuck up.”

Harley rolled his eyes, “Either way, Miles is right. You’re too young to have a love life.”

“And you’re to young to get married.”

“Well,” Harley bristled at his sisters tone, “I’m eighteen, he’s eighteen, we’ve been together for three years, and we know each other like the back of a hand. Plus in the business that Peter is in… well…”

Silence hung thick in the air. They all knew what Harley was talking about. It wasn’t like they hadn’t had a few close calls, because they had. And every time Peter Benjamin Parker pulled through. But it was the idea- the very premiss- of losing someone you love that made the two of them want to get married. Plus the fact that sooner than later Harley would be in Massachusetts and Peter would still be here, alone.

Both of them would be alone.

But if they were married, at least they were alone together. It was a promise. A promise that Harley found himself loving more and more the more he thought about it. God it was fantastic. They were going to get married. They were really going to get married. Till death do they part. And even after death, something in Harley whispered, he’s the only one. He’s the only one that Harley could ever see himself being with.

“Yeah,” Miles huffed awkwardly, trying to distract from the sudden tension that had crept in the air, “Lila and you aren’t even dating. And they have been dating since their freshmen year."

“Yeah, yeah,” Abbie rolled her eyes, “And me and Lila will never end up dating will we?”

“I don’t know about that,” Harley shrugged, still halfway lost in his thoughts of marrying Peter, “When I first met Peter in real life I didn’t think I’d ever date him.”

Miles raised a brow at him, “Dude, I wasn’t even there and I know for a fact that you two were flirting hard core.”

“See what I mean,” Abbie motioned to her brother, looking at Miles as she spoke, “He’s a fanfic trope.”

Miles held his hands up in an ‘I surrender’ way, “I never doubted that. You forget I’ve seen them interact.”

“Y’all,” Harley stood, motioning to the both of them, “Are rude.”

“Whatever.”

“Uhh, sorry.”

Harley walked towards the door, before turning back to them, “By the way Abbie, you should just go for it.”

Abbie blinked at him, “You sure?”

“Yeah,” Harley nodded, turning back towards the door and leaving the room.

Oh how they grow up.

He thought for a second. Peter had asked for his little sisters blessing. This boy was perfect. He was so perfect. Harley sighed happily, walking on air as he went to his room.  
  


 

_Six Days Until The Rest of Their Lives_

  


Peter <3:

Heya

You okay?

You’re not here today

 

Harley:

Yeet im feeling pretty

uh

bleh

 

Peter <3:

Yikes.

How bad is it?

 

Harley:

way better now that im talking to you

 

Peter <3:

Oh my god

I need to call the police.

You’re d y i n g

 

Harley:

Shfkafjdgsafjldsagfjadslfgjdsfgsdfg

arent i aloud to flirt with my boyfriend

 

Peter <3:

I mean.

Yes.

But you usually go for less cheesy stuff.

 

Harley:

I toatlly go for the cheesy stuff

 

Peter <3:

Bet

 

Harley:

Well I guess you’re sleeping alone tonight

 

Peter <3:

BFJSFLGDJSALFJDSKFH

WAHT EVER WILL I DO

WITHOUT MY DARLING BOYFRIEND

HOGGING THE COVERS

 

Harley:

Hey!!!!1!

i dont steal the covers

Just your heart

 

Peter <3:

AND HE STICKS THE LANDING

 

Harley:

Thank you thank you

i put a lot of thought into that

 

Peter <3:

I know you did, love.

 

Harley:

I wish you were heeere

 

Peter <3:

I wish I was too

I’ll stop by after school ok?

After the field trip

 

Harley:

Hfjskafhdjkslfgj

Oh yeah we had a field trip

 

Peter <3:

Gfjdskfgkaf

How did you forget?

 

Harley:

Youre like 1000000000000000%

my own personal calender bc you know everything

 

Peter <3:

Oof that wounds me.

Is taht why you keep me around.

 

Harley:

That and a few other reasosns

 

Peter <3:

Like?

 

Harley:

Like the facy I love you

And your hair

And your smile

And Your personality

 

Peter <3:

Oh my god,

Can’t believe I’m crying on a school bus.

I love you so much??

 

Harley:

And that D

 

Peter <3:

Aaaaaand moments gone.

 

Harley:

Hfsadgjfdghafkgdjsafgdaksgf

pelase dont break up w/ me

Ill have to keep the kids

and i cant handle shuri and MJs flirting

 

Peter <3:

Does that mean that I keep Ned?

 

Halrey:

Did i not say kidS

 

Peter <3:

Ned is clearly more my kid than yours

 

Harley:

Bitch

 

Peter <3:

Oh, I’m the bitch?

 

Harley:

I CANNOT BELEIVE YOUR CALLING ME OUT

LIKE THIS

WHAT THE FUCK

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BEDROOM

STAYS THERE

 

Peter <3:

HSJFSVAFHAGFDSFHDSHFDSAFDS

IM SORRY

YOU STARTED IT

WITH THE D JOKE

 

Harley:

HKLHFJDLSHFJSDKHFDS

ITS OK

BC ILY

BUT ID DIDNT START THIS OMG

IT WAS A JOKE

  
  


Peter <3:

SO WAS MINE

FDHSFJKLHDSFJKLHD

 

Harley:

HFJKDSLFJDSKLFHDSFHDSFD

 

Peter <3:

HDFJASKDHFJKLSAGFJKDLFHASDFD

 

Harley:

FGDJSFG\SGFJKAJHEFSFCVU?

 

Peter <3:

FJGFDSHJKFGHJKEBJ??

 

Harley:

JKSGDFJSDLFGJFLHJ!

  


Peter <3:

Are we just like.

Keyboard smashing a conversation.

 

Harley:

Yes

 

Peter <3:

You are my soulmate, I want you to know that.

 

Harley:

I love you a loy

 

Peter <3:

‘Loy’

 

Harley:

yes, i love you a loy

Asshole

 

Peter <3:

But I’m your asshole

 

Harley:

but youre my asshole

Hey im gonna go eat

Bc as much as i hate throwing up

I hate the hungy more

  


Peter <3:

“I hate the Hungy More” -Harley Keener-Stark 2k18

 

Harley:

Die

 

Peter <3:

That’s my line!

 

Harley:

you cant see it but im rolling my eyes at you

 

Peter <3:

And grinning at the phone with love?

 

Harley:

Nope never do that no sir

 

Peter <3:

L I A R

 

Harley:

Hjfkldhsfkalsdfjkl

bye

 

Peter <3:

NOOOOOOOoooooo

Dont leave me!!

 

Harley:

i have to eaaat

let me eat in peace!!!1

 

Peter <3:

fine fine fine

I loooooove you

 

Harley:

I love you moooooore

  


Harley grinned at his phone, setting it down.

Peter had no idea he had found the ring. No idea that Harley knew that they were going to be the endgame. He felt his heart soar. Though that could have been him getting sick again. Yeah, it was probably just that.

He slid into the kitchen, “Heya heya.”

“Hey,” Tony huffed, looking exhausted despite the fact that he and Pepper hadn’t even gone on a run yet, “You feeling better?”

“No,” Harley groaned, sitting down at the kitchen.

“Tony Edward Stark, you stop babying him,” Pepper sent both of them a look, “And Harley Tyler Keener-Stark, stop wallowing.”

“Pepper, I am _dying,”_ Harley exaggerated, slumping in the chair, “I’m sick with  a deadly disease and you just accuse me of wallowing!”

“Deadly disease, huh?” Pepper’s voice was dry.

“Yes, a deadly disease,” Tony looked at her, pointing at his son, “Isn’t that the face of a kid that is dying.”

She rolled her eyes, “Your son is eighteen years old, and has been for some time. He’s going off to college next September, and is graduating high school in a few months. That kid is almost an adult.”

“Wow Pepper,” Harley faux gasped, “I’m really feeling the love here.”

“Harley, honey,” Pepper rolled her eyes at him again, patting his head, “I love you a lot, but come on. You made yourself sick.”

“Okay, wow,” Harley glanced at her, eyebrows raised, “Me eating five slices of cake was not my own fault!”

“Mhmm.”

“Tony, will you please tell Pepper that Vision’s baking skills are too good for me to not eat five slices of cake.”

“Pepper,” Pepper sent Tony a look and he looked back at Harley, “Sorry but, Pepper is right Harley. You made yourself sick.”

“I hate the both of you,” He groaned at them, “Go on your run and get out of here.”

Pepper rolled her eyes at him, “Yeah, yeah.”

“Living the healthy,” Tony muttered to him as he passed, “The best thing in the world.”

Harley waved him off as he tapped away at his phone, not paying attention to his parents walking through the doors. Oh, tumblr in the morning.

Some asshole was talking about how the rouges should have been pardoned way sooner than six months ago. Harley frowned. Was this person ignoring the entirety of the people who had been affected by Germany? He debated reblogging it, refuting the point, and moving on, but honestly, HKeenster had done a great job of shooting it down.

He was still baffled that there were blogs dedicated to him. Guess that was the life of a kid of a superhero. Plus he had followed HKeenster when they were still IronManStanNumberOneBois, and the fact they now thought he was going to be the next iron man was pretty flattering. He was actually kind of honored. So what their profile picture was the one photo Abbie had taken of him rummaging through the fridge at three AM? That didn’t matter. So what? So what they had turned him into the ultimate meme? He wasn’t bitter.

Tumblr was a little wild. He stood, stretching his legs, grabbing a bowl and the stupid whole grain cereal that Pepper insisted that they eat. He stomach growled. He slouched into his seat again, shovelling food into his mouth.

He blinked hard.

He wondered if people shipped him and Peter. He had more than a many posts on his instagram and twitter about Peter. He slipped onto the Harley Keener tag. The first post to greet him was titled “Six reasons Harley Keener should date Spider-Man instead of Peter Parker” by EmrysCzerny. He choked.

If only they _knew._

He glanced up, looking out the window. Spaceship in the sky. He looked back at his phone typing out a response to the- Spaceship in the sky. He blinked harder, “What the fuck…?”

“Um,” Harley’s eyes never left the spaceship, “Fri, are you seeing this?”

“Notifying boss right away.”

“Can you call Peter?”

“On it.”

The phone in his hand plinked with a memo of accepted call, “Uh Peter, are you-”

“Already on it!”

“Alright, be safe.”

“Always,” Peter told him, probably using Karen as a phone again, “I love you, see ya!”

“Yeah… see ya.”

Harley never once glanced away from the spaceship.

 

His phone rang maybe half an hour later, “Peter? Are you okay?”

“Don’t freak out."

Harley blinked. That wasn’t good, “What?”

“You saw the spaceship leave right?”

“Yes,” Harley put together the pieces, “Please tell me you aren’t on that spaceship Peter Benjamin Parker.”

“Don’t freak out! And tell Aunt May for me- I can only make this call because Karen has direct access to Friday- and also the Iron Spider suit is amazing, thank you- and oh there's bad guys!”

“What- Iron,” Harley blinked, “Iron spider? Its working?”

“Yeah, yeah! Listen, I have to go. I love you, Harley. I’ll be back.”

“I love y-”

The click of the phone was a shock to Harley. There was an ever present sinking in his gut, that something was about to go very very wrong. He breathed in.

It wouldn’t. Because Peter said he’d be back, and Peter always came back. For now, all he could do was call May, and start designing more weapons. Something was coming, and Harley knew he’d need to be prepared.

Peter would be back.  


 

_A Day Until The  Rest of Their Lives_

  


“What do you mean Spider-Man won’t be joining us?”

Harley huffed impatiently at Steve, “For the last time, the Spider-Man you’re usually working with is 18. The Spider-Man that’s still on earth isn’t. He can’t just go to Wakanda to fight.”

“Yeah,” Miles, masked and with the voice modulator on, agreed with Harley, “As much as I want to go to Wakanda and help Vision and you guys, I can’t. We don’t know how long that will take, and my parents would never let me. And besides, we need to have a person here in New York- you know, holding down the fort.”

“That’s a fair point,” Bruce nodded at him, “Besides, I think we can handle a fight without the Spider-Man.”

The hologram of Shuri nodded at Bruce’s words,”Dr. Banner is right. You Avengers have fought without the Spider-Boy before, you may do it again.”

“Yes,” Steve sighed, his brow furrowing, “I just thought we would have everyone in this fight.”

“We have enough,” Natasha reasoned, “Besides, Harley has agreed to update our weaponry.”

Harley sighed at her, rolling his eyes, “I didn’t _agree_ to anything.”

“But you said-”

“I said that I would update your weapons for the fight,” Harley interrupted Wanda’s words loudly and clearly, “Because this is a tense situation, and I need to do what Tony would do. But these updates aren’t cleared by the accords, and because I’m not an accords agent nor do I work with the accords, I can’t agree to anything, and your weapons will have to be reinstated to their original styling or else we all get in trouble.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“I can’t legally update the weapons,” Harley explained in simpler terms, “So saying that I agreed to update your weapons may get us into legal trouble after y’all win the battle.”

Shuri hologram nodded, “I will also be supplying you with weapons, because Harley isn’t the only super genius in this meeting.”

“Oh really?” Harley grinned at his friend, “‘Super genius huh?”

“Keener,” Shuri’s voice went on warning, and she suddenly looked her age of seventeen, “Do not expose me.”

Miles blinked, his voice modulator not concealing his surprise, “Wait, wait, wait, hold on, since when does Harley have dirt on Princess Shuri?”

“Well,” His grin widened, “You know how me and my boyfriend have a legendary story of obliviousness?”

Miles nodded and Shuri made a noise of absolute rage, so Harley continued, “Shuri is worse.”

“Shuri is worse?” The mask obscured his expression but Harley could feel the disbelief.

“Shuri is worse.”

Shuri, for her credit, looked mortify, “Can we _please_ get back to the meeting?”

“Yes,” Natasha’s voice was  strict and harsh, “In case all of you didn’t notice, this isn’t some teen chat room. This is a matter of life and death.”

Harley’s eyes met hers and they matched off, “We recognize. Easing the tension doesn’t mean we don’t recognize the severity of the situations.”

“And before you say anything,” Harley cut off Wanda, who had opened her mouth to say something, “I’ve already updated any weapons that need updating and aren’t being handled by Shuri and her team.”

Bruce nodded, “Then we’ll suit up and head out.”

“Yeah,” Harley nodded at him, smile returning, “And if Hulk is still having trouble getting it up, you have full access to the Hulkbuster Armor.”

“Regardless,” Natasha spoke over Bruce’s sputtering, “Are we all in agreement for the plan?”

Everyone nodded, and started dispersing. Shuri’s hologram call ended before Miles could ask her more questions. Miles headed out soon after, talking to Bruce about something or another regarding genetic mutations. Everyone else filed out.

Except Steve Rogers.

Harley raised an eyebrow at him, “Can I help you, Rogers?”

“No,” Steve blinked at him, but seemingly went through an internal debate, “Actual yes.”

“Well?”

“I just,” he seemed uncomfortable standing near the wall, “I was wondering why you weren’t going to give me back the shield.”

Harley tensed, his brow raising farther, “I thought you were informed that the shield was returned to Wakanda since it’s made of _stolen_ vibranium.”

“I wasn’t.”

“Weird,” Harley stated dryly, “Even if that wasn’t the case, I probably would have asked you be supply something that you hadn’t used to kill my dad with.”

“We’re in a life or death situation, and you won’t provide me with my shield?”

“No, because even if I wanted to, which I don’t, I couldn’t,” Harley rolled his eyes, “Like I said. Wakanda has it. They might be able to give it back to you. Are we done here?”

Steve didn’t say anything, so Harley stood heading to the door. Steve stood straighter, “Wait.”

“Yes?” Harley turned to him.

“You said that you have to do what Tony would do,” Steve said slowly, “So why aren’t you armoring up?”

Harley paused. That was a good question. A question that he had asked himself so many times in the past few days. He sighed, “The redemption armor isn’t supposed to be used unless Tony’s dead.  And he’s not dead yet.”

“Oh.”

“Besides,” Harley looked away from Steve, “I wouldn’t be able to help much. Not with knowing that Spider-Man is here with no backup, especially because we don’t know exactly how long this battle will take or if it will be a full scale invasion or not. Better to stand backup than leave the rest of the world with only a kid to watch over it.”

“You’re just a kid too, Harley,” Steve’s brow was furrowed.

Harley rolled his eyes, “Yes, but I’m also a super genius who knows how to play this game of heroes and win it, too.”

Harley walked away from the door, before pausing again, “And by the way, I’m eighteen. I’m not exactly a kid anymore. If I was needed in a fight, I could join. But I’m not needed, because as much as I hate y’all, you and the rest of the rogues know how to fight. So go get your shit and save the world.”

Harley continued to walk, getting out his phone to text Miles. He had a headache.

  


_The Decimation_

  


Harley didn’t actually remember the decimation. He didn’t remember what happened all that day. All he knew was that he had gripped onto his sister and Pepper and stared in horror as May Parker and Happy Hogan disappeared into ash and dust. All he knew was that that day he had gone into the streets rallying people, to go to Stark tower. They didn’t know what was going on, but they had resources, power, and enough food to last months.

And people listened to him. They listened to him on instagram, and Snapchat, and Twitter, and everywhere they could. They reblogged his post on tumblr telling people that Stark Tower was up and running and safe, and if you were a minor whose family had been taken by the snap, they could help you. They could offer you safety.

People came in in droves, each one looking more and more shocked than the last. They figured out a system of priority: Children whose parents were gone, families who didn’t know what to do, people on their own who had lost everyone came first. People with nothing came first.

The power outage and the government shut down didn't help. People were in complete panic mode. Harley was just grateful to be doing something and helping people. He needed to focus on it. To focus on anything but what could have happened.

They used Miles as a rallying point. People recognized him. They recognized Spider-Man. They could trust Spider-Man. Even if they didn’t know that it was Miles under the blue and red mask. Even if Miles had shed his traditional black and red to slip on Peter’s costume.

He had lost everything. Miles was just barely holding on, having come to the tower with streaming tears because he just didn’t know where to go. His dad was gone. His mom was gone. May was gone. But Abbie wasn’t and that made him okay because he had someone he knew and he was safe, and he would fix this.

He was a big help for the people. It was easy getting them to accept help because they trusted Spider-Man. Maybe there was hope for the people yet.

 

Harley mainly was working on the technology aspect of the ‘helping people.’ It was better than doing nothing and driving himself insane. He was doing his best, trying his best, to do the things Tony would do in this situation.

Miles dumped some wrenches next to him, “What are we even trying to do?”

“Half of New York and the surrounding areas have lost power,” Harley creaked open a circuit board, “Stark Tower runs on energy produced by a separate Arc Reactor. We can direct half the energy in this tower and power the majority of the city, and still have enough to keep the tower and all of its functions running.”

“Oh. That's smart.”

Harley slipped on rubber gloves, “Anything we can do to help. Have you been helping round up and direct families here?”

“Yeah,” Miles nodded, looking awkward and fidgety, “It feels wrong that I’m wearing Peter’s costume.”

Harley’s hands were scanning the wiring and trying to find something, “I know, but your regular costume isn’t as famous yet. Plus, he won’t mind.”

“He won’t mind,” Miles echoed, “If he’s even alive and if he even comes back, he won’t mind.”

“He’ll be back,” Harley’s eyes never left the wiring of the tower, his fingers tinkering with the lines, “He’s alive. I know he is.”

“How do you know?” Miles’s voice cracked, “How do you still believe Peter is alive? We’ve lost _everyone._ I lost my _dad_ . How the hell do you know that Peter is ok?”   
  
Harley paused. He knew why Miles was saying this. He knew why. The kid had lost both of his parents, and was being used as a rallying point so that they could get more people safe. He wasn’t having enough space to grieve. Harley sighed, “I just do.”   
  
“Why?!” Miles snapped, “Why do you just know?! We don’t know! We don’t know anything!”   
  
“I just know because,” Harley swallowed his own breath, “I just know because if I let myself think that Peter is dead for even a second, I won’t be able to help the people I need to help. I love Peter. Peter loves me. He said he was coming back. I believe him. And right now, you and I need to be making sure that there is not a _single child_ in this city that doesn’t have someone looking after them. Right now, you and I need to make sure that the _people of this city_ have someone looking after them. We don’t have time to think of the what if’s. We need to focus on the now. Peter isn’t dead, because he said he was coming back. And when he gets back, I’d bet my bottom dollar that he and Tony will have a plan. But they’re not back yet. So right now the only thing we can do is help the people we can.”   
  
Miles blinked at him, tears gathering in his eyes, but he nodded, “Yeah. Yeah. My dad would want that too.”   
  
“I know, kid,” Harley kept his voice soft and kind, “Why don’t you go help Abbie watch the younger kids.”   
  
“Okay.”

Harley watched him walk away. He hated that he couldn’t do more to help Miles, but he needed to be strong. He needed to work. He needed this all to work. Because they may have lost the biggest battle of their time, but he would be damned if he let himself lose the people of the world. They needed a guiding light.

As the power of Stark Tower was redirected to the rest of the city, Harley realized they needed him to be a guiding light.

 

Friday had alerted them of the video the second it had come from space. Pepper was already pacing her way through the floorboards. Rhodey- Bruce, Thor, and the rogues might have been in the background-  was on video call in Wakanda. Miles was rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Abbie was quickly rushing to Harley side as they all stared at the screen that Friday was presenting.

The video quality of the transmission was shaky at best. It was entirely pixelated they could barely make out the shapes of two bodies standing. Harley felt his heart rate skyrocket. There was no way that wasn’t them.

Abbie gripped his hand, her eyes wide. Pepper put her hand over her mouth. There was only one place that this video could have come from. The only place that was routed in the system of Friday’s. The iron Man armor. This was filmed by the Iron Man Armor.

Tony Stark was alive. And if the tall figure next to him said anything, Peter Parker was too.

The static cleared up for a second, “Loss-” more static, “-be Okay.”

More and more static. Harley felt his hands twitch in Abbie’s hold.

"Peter-" There was more static, and Harley held his breath, "-re coming home-"  
  
Harley let out the breath, his smile itching across his face. Everyone in the room was laughing. He was okay. _Tony stark_ was okay. _Peter_ was okay. they were coming back home. They were coming back home.   
  
If anyone noticed the heavy tone in Tony’s voice, they didn’t mention it to an overjoyed Harley.   
  
Peter was coming back. Peter was coming back!

They were coming back, and they would have a plan, and it would be okay. It would all be okay, because Peter was coming back.

 

 

_Ten Days After The Decimation_

  


When the small pod of a spaceship landed on the roof of Stark Tower, it was sunset. They had been alerted by Friday when the ship had entered the atmosphere, and they had spent hours in anticipation. Pacing and pacing on the roof of the tower, waiting.

Pepper wouldn’t stop fretting, “What if he's not okay?”

“Pepper,” Abbie was trying to calm her down, “He will be. Both him and Peter will be okay and back.”

“You should listen to Abbie,” Harley’s eyes had not left the skyline since Friday had told them they had entered the atmosphere, “She’s right.”

“Maybe, but,” Pepper was still pacing, “I’m just worried, we don’t know the extent of his injures..”

She trailed off, her eyes locked onto the incoming spaceship. Everyone stared, and Abbie reached for her brother. Harley held his sister close as they all watched with weary eyes as the ship landed.

The door opened to Tony Stark looking beat halfway to hell, and a woman. Harley’s vision narrowed on his dad, as Abbie threw herself towards the only father she had ever known, and both him and Pepper followed suit, slamming into Tony as they gripped onto him. He was back! He was back!

Abbie was half laughing half crying as she buried her face in Tony’s side, “You’re back! You’re really really back!”

“I’m back,” Tony’s voice was choked up, probably from the tight grip his fiance and kids tight grip on hum, but also from the feeling of being back in their arms, ‘I’m back.”

“You’re okay,” Pepper was sobbing, holding onto his face, “I thought you were dead.”

“Well,” Tony grinned at her, “I’m a hard man to kill.”

Harley laughed loudly, eyes misty, “Fuck yeah you are.”

He felt himself sink into his dad arms, so happy that his dad was back. That his dad was okay.

Something was wrong, his mind was whispering. He pulled away from Tony, stepping back from his dad’s arms, scanning the roof.

Tony blinked at him, “Harley?

“Where?’ Harley was shaking with realization, his eyes scanning the roof, “Where is Peter?”

He knew the answer. Oh god, he knew the answer. Tony didn’t have to answer. He knew what he would say.

He saw it in Tony’s stance. In his eyes. In the way he held himself and the way he was clutching Pepper and Abbie. He blinked hard, “Tony, where is Peter.”

“Kid…”

“Where is he?,” His voice was so frustrated and getting louder, “Where the fuck is Peter Parker?!”

“Harley…” His voice was soft, hs eyes sad. He reached for Harley. Harley pulled back.

His hands shot up to his hair, “No. No. No, no, no, Peter- he-”

“Harley,” Tony took a step towards him, “Kid, he-”

“No,” Harley’s voice was loud and heartbreaking, “No, no- he can’t hes- hes not-”

Abbie’s hands flew to her mouth, and Pepper held her close. Harley almost didn’t notice. He didn’t notice. He couldn’t notice. His vision tunneled on Tony, “Where- He can’t be- Tony- he-"

“Harley,” His voice was tight, “I tried to tell you, in the message I tried to-”

Harley felt his legs give out, and he hit the ground, clutching at his heart and chest, because he couldn’t breath he couldn't, “No- no- Peter he- god- He-”

“He said he was going to be back,” Harley looked at Tony, tears streaming down his face and obscuring his vision, “He said he was going to be back- no- no he said- he said he was gonna be back!”

“Harley..”

"He always comes back!” Harley couldn’t breath, he was shaking so hard, “He always comes back! No matter what happens he- he always comes back! He’d never- He- He always comes back!”

“Harley, listen-”

“He comes back, he always back- Peter- he- he always comes back,” Harley wasn’t sure what was happening at this point, the overwhelming feeling of panic taking over, “He always comes back- he always comes back- he- he- he was going to propose.”

The world around him went silent and he lifted his head up to Tony, “Did you know? Did you know he was going to propose to me?”

Tony nodded silently. Harley felt himself wheeze, the feeling of grief and sadness pressing down on his chest, trapping him, “We were going to get married. We were going to get married. We were going to be happy- god- god we were going to get _married._ I- he- he was going to propose.”

He was going to propose. Harley was going to accept. It was going to be perfect.

But there, on the roof of Stark Tower- the place that Peter had planned to propose to him- Harley realized something.   
  
He was never going to have that happy ending, because Peter Parker was _dead._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE GO EASY ON ME I BEG OF YOU. I'M SORRY. 
> 
> As always, very special shot out to Emrysczerny on tumblr for helping me! This fic has been such a wild ride and it actually hurst me a lot to end it like this. I usually don't ever end a fic on an ending like this, but because I have ideas for this series, I needed this fic to end like this. I promise that this was the planned and intended end of this fic because of the rest of the series. If you want to read their actual happy ending, I suggest keeping up with this series and the next fic that will be going up next week. 
> 
> As always, please leave a comment telling me what you think, but please, refrain from being like. Actually mean to me. i put a lot of work, heart, and love into this fic, and while you may not like the end, its still something that means a lot to me.


	11. Authors Note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just to clarify a few things for a few friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi yes, this isn't a new chapter just a note

fhasfdjklafjdaks 

 

okay so like

 

just to clarify

 

this fic was written pre-endgame and the entire series after this point are NOT endgame compliant and will never be. Characters like Morgan will appear!! But the actual events of endgame themselves aren't canon in this universe lol. I only clarify this bc a few irl friends of mine were like, "I cant believe you're gonna age harley up five years and peter will still be 18!" First of all, no. 

I already wrote part 2 of this series, and in that i say that the events of the snap last for four months- mainly bc i needed the age thing to stay the same and I as a person could not handle writing five years worth of grief, you know? Plus the other thing. Y'all know the other thing. 

 

Second of all, idk man, I just don't think that I want some of the events of endgame/SP:FFH to be a thing bc of the universe I've already low key established?? 

Just making sure everyones aware. Also, if you're finished with this one please be sure to go read the second instilation in the First Name Harley series- Last Name Was Supposed To be Parker! 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you can hit me up @ peachy-keener if you wanT!

**Author's Note:**

> So tell me what y'all think! 
> 
> Also A big shoudt out to emrysczerny on tumble for helping to beta this fic!! Check me out at Peachy-Keener on tumblr, and also, if you look up Peter and Harley's blogs they're real ;)


End file.
